Diamonized
by Double-Dweeb
Summary: An unlikely relationship forms between two unbeknownst teenagers. - - Basically my take on what happens between Edd and Marie after junior high. Everything in this is non-cannon, and all character belong to Danny Anntonucci.
1. Chapter 1

The summer sun was casting a final fare-well before the cul-de-sac. What was to follow the next day as the start of the kids sophomore year. As each of the Eds enjoyed their last day of freedom, they eventually drifted into the realm of dreams, pondering how the next day was to play out.

6:00 am, the alarm goes off in Double Dee's house. As he wakes up from his daze, he begins to ready himself for his morning rituals as par the normal school day. He gathered cloths as he prepared to wash, and shave the unsightly chin stubble that found its way onto his chin the previous nights. Edd was not one for facial hair, and made an effort to keep his face as smooth as possible. After a quick shower, he dressed in the usual attire of a brownish-red cardigan, dark blue jeans, and of course, his trademark Ski-hat.

After dressing, he decided it was high time to make breakfast, and made for the ingredients cabinet. He had decided on a quick omelet this morning and prepared the ingredients accordingly. A few close calls with the burner later, he was feasting on his own omelet. Before heading out the door, he double checked for blemishes and wrinkles on his cloths, made sure his hair was straight, and finally grabbed his keys.

Not long after, he found himself in his esteemed Honda Civic. Although not as passionate as some over his car, he was a proud owner, as it had good gas efficiency, and thus was more kind to the environment. Just an hour after he awoke, and a quick turn of the key, he was off to his friends' houses.

He knew his friends would be relying on him for a ride, as he was the only one of the trio to retain his license. Eddy had a bad temperament behind the wheel, and got charged with wreck less driving. Ed simply never took the test. But of course, Double Dee still had possession over his. Even then, he was only one of four in the neighborhood to be in possession of a working car. Rolf was still driving his tractor to school, without a permit of course. Kevin's dad had eventually succumbed to his whining and, _regrettably,_ financed him a Harley Davidson bike. The last to own a car was none other than Lee Kanker. She drove an old Toyota to and from school, with her sisters latching on of course.

After a quick check of his blindspots Double Dee flipped the gear into R and backed out of his drive way, already coming into view of Ed and Eddy. When he switched gears and went alongside them, he was greeted by a happily confused Ed and a frustrated Eddy.

"But then do where do eggs come from Eddy?" ask a baffled Ed.

"I told ya Lumpy, the come out of their moms' va-hey! It's Sock-head!"

"Hello to you too, Eddy." Double Dee replied sarcastically.

"Oh man, we're gonna get all the chicks cruising in this hot rod!" exclaimed an excited Eddy.

"We're getting baby chickens?!" asked a classically confused Ed.

"While we could 'pick up some chicks', I'd much rather not be tardy for our first day of tenth grade." said Double Dee.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. C'mon Ed." replied a grumbling Eddy.

The ride was awkwardly quiet, aside from Ed's occasional laughing. Double Dee decided to break the silence with a question;

"Would you gentlemen like some breakfast?"

"But I don't have any money Double Dee!" exasperated a desperate Ed.

"I would be happy to buy you some breakfast, you too Eddy." Double Dee replied, smiling.

"As much as I like getting free stuff, I'll have ta' turn you down Sock-head. My diet says so." replied an oddly calm Eddy.

"A diet? Whatever for?" poised Double Dee.

"Well, I've hit a bit of a growth spurt ya see, and I figure the dames want some bulk to look at while they're staring at me." responded Eddy while winking in the mirror.

"Well, I'm happy that you've decided to start a new healthy lifestyle, Eddy. I'd be happy to provide you with some of my healthy living books." said Double Dee.

"Thanks, but no thanks. My dad has me on his old protein diet. He's a legend at Peach Creek ya' know? Best running back 87-91 I tell ya." boasted Eddy.

"Even if that is….questionable, I still bid you good luck." said Double Dee.

After a few corny jokes, they arrived at _Burger King_ and got some food. The rest of the ride was relatively silent, again, being interrupted by Ed's gurgling of gravy.

"Alright gentlemen, now I just have to check what my designated parking spot i-" he dropped mid-sentence as he read the number. He crept through the parking lot until he reached spot #69.

"Sixty-nine?!" exclaimed a laughing Eddy.

"I don't get it…"said Ed in his usual dopey tone.

"Ha ha, laugh it up Eddy. You'll have to grow up someday." The last part was mumbled.

"Well, that ain't today." said Eddy while brushing his nose.

"Anyways, are you two ready for our first day of tenth grade?" questioned an excited Double Dee.

They exchanged their no's.

"Well, let's start this train wreck." grumbled Eddy.

As they were preparing to depart, they heard the unpleasant sund of muffler-less car approach. As the obnoxious joyrider pulled alongside them they realize it was none other than Lee Kanker.


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh no…" mumbled Eddy as the sister left their vehicle.

"Hubba hubba, our men got prettied up for us today!" Lee pronounced in her usual grumbling accent.

"N-now girls, don't you think you could look the other way? If only for this morning, we wouldn't want to be late." pleaded a trembling Double Dee.

"Calm down their scamp, we'll have plenty of time for smoochin' later." Lee responded while eyeing Eddy with a predatory like gaze.

With the crisis averted, Double Dee took notice of his personal tormentors' absence. He weighed in his head whether or not to inquire on it, and decided on the former.

"Um, Lee?" stammered a cautious Double Dee.

"What do ya want gappy?" Lee replied, insulting his tooth gap.

"I've noticed that your sister, Marie is it, isn't present?" said a suddenly confident Double Dee.

"Awww Double Dee misses his girlfriend!" Lee mocked, forming a heart with her hands. "No, but seriously, she said somethin' about riding her bike to school I think. If you really care so much, check the shop." She revealed in an oddly direct manner, for Lee anyways.

Double Dee was taken aback by her insults, and a small blush had formed on his cheeks. He quickly brushed that aside when they walked off toward the school.

"Geez Sock-head, why'd ya give a damn about Marie anyways?" inquired Eddy.

"I was simply asking if she was here or not, I am chairperson of absentees, you know." defended Double Dee.

"Whatever ya say Edd." Eddy said, oddly calling him by his first name.

While the boys were beginning their walk to the entrance, Marie had just arrived in the back lot where the shop door was. She had been a star-student in the 'Foundations of Technology' classes, and done equally as well in the shop and auto classes. Her normal appear post-eighth grade had been a black tank top overlaid with an olive green, form fitting half-jacket. She wore the same material pants, only they were a slightly darker color. Her entire outfit was topped with a rustic, seemingly well aged necklace with an emblem of a double coursed cog. She had retained the same 'punk' style over the years, even crowned with the same blue hair.

By the time she had arrived, it was five minutes before the late bell. Before she could get her academic day started, she would have to check on the machinery, as she did all summer out of boredom. Once everything was in check, she headed to her locker; #65. After which she would pick up her class and lunch schedules. She had hoped that this semester would almost solely be dedicated to Art II and Shop III, but she knew she wouldn't get that lucky.

As she was walking to the counselors office to get her schedule, she turned a corner and bumped into the lankiest member of the Eds; Double Dee. Nearly instantaneously after the collision, Edd was on his feet, scurrying to pick up all of his school papers and helping Marie up before realizing who it was. As soon as she looked up and met his gaze, he was in a catatonic state of terror. What could she have planned for him in this empty hallway? Will she humiliate him on the first day? Could the luck from the earlier confrontation with the Kankers still hold true?

"Hey, watch it!" Marie shouted as he tried to help her up.

"M-marie! I'm sorry if the collision caused you any harm, but I uh.. I must get going if I want to keep on schedule." stammered Double Dee.

Just before Edd could scuttle off, Marie grabbed the back of his shirt.

"Now wait just a minute mister, you really think I'd let you get away that easily?" Marie said to a trembling Edd. "The toll for bumping into me will be….hmm…one kiss on the cheek! Pucker up, rose bud!" she exerted before giving him a sloppy kiss on the cheek.

After the confrontation, Marie swaggered off to retrieve her schedule, which left Edd on the floor of the freshly polished hallway floor. As he came to his senses, he, again, gathered his fallen possessions and went to a nearby sink to wash away the salvia of the sixteen year old menace.

After a quick wash, he made his way to his first block class; English II. Edd had always excelled in the grammatical side of English, but not so much the creative side. Although he more than made of for his lack in creativity with raw genius and proofreading.

As he took his seat in the front row of classroom, he took the essentials for writing out of his backpack, including his rarely seen reading glasses. At the same time as he was readying for the course ahead, the door slammed open moment before the late bell to reveal Marie Kanker had the same class as Edd. He internally screamed, half in anger and half in fear. Although his outside demeanor didn't showcase this at all.

Marie's entrance did merit her some tossed stares, of which she was more than happy to return with a snarl. As she was surveying the room for an optimal seat, she noticed all the back seats were taken by the local skating crowd, a majority of the middle rows were occupied by the football and cheerleading kids, and the front row had one lone nerdy teenager; Double Dee. The same predatory grin her sister performed earlier accompanied her face as she saw his silent fear while he was staring at her. She then noticed the only non-front row seat was right behind her beloved. She was more than happy to occupy said seat.

Double Dee had almost lost his composure, but luckily had enough social training in ninth grade to refrain from an awkward outburst of hyperventilating and sweat. Up until Marie had begun her strut to Edd's row, and plopped down behind him. After she sat down, he felt the air around the back of his head move, and prepared for a whisper.

"We're gonna have a lot of fun, Double Dee." Marie whispered in a sultry voice before bursting out in a giggle fit.

Double Dee didn't really have anything to say by this point, and just stayed quiet, accepting his fate. After that, the class crept by with many of ' rants on grammar and the occasional smart-ass remark from Kevin.

After first block had ended, Double Dee made his way to his next block, which just so happened to be lunch. Double Dee had always hated eating lunch so early, as it had only been two hours since he ate breakfast, and felt he was putting too much on his metabolism. After that thought, he realized that since the English wing had first lunch, that he wouldn't have any friends in the same period, as Ed and Eddy both landed in a US Government class. Despite this, and with a loathing sigh, Double Dee prepared for a forty-five minute study session. That is, until an equally bad thought knocked on his head; he would be sharing the same lunch with Marie, and from the looks of it, none of her friends (or rather sisters) were in the same lunch. It would just be him and her, with no possible means of distraction.

Soon after, he arrived at the lunch room. They were serving fried chicken with a side item of creamed corn. Being the health enthusiast he is, he packed a peanut butter and celery sandwich, with a side of sugar-free caramel in case he got a sweet tooth.

As he was preparing to open his lunch bag, he heard shouting coming from the girls bathroom. He debated if it was his place as a student to investigate, and eventually decided that his standing as a Good Samaritan out-weighed his place as a pupil, and went to see what was causing the ruckus. The closer he got, the louder the laughing, and what would appear to be crying got. What he saw when he went into the bathroom absolutely shocked him.

Authors' notes:

Hello people of Fanfiction! I'm sorry if these updates are short, I'm not really the best writer, nor do I really have any of this pre-planned. I got a message asking me about the ages of everyone, and assuming that the Eds were 12-13 at the end of the show, I assume that they were in 7th grade. So my age system goes as such:

Ed:17

Edd:16 (6 months younger than Edd)

Eddy: 16 (4 months younger than Edd)

Any and all reviews are extremely welcome, and I'm super sorry if I can't update a whole lot what with school and other things.

~unheardassin


	3. Chapter 3

What Double Dee had walked in on was enough to send shivers down his spine. It would appear to be a handful of the cheerleaders (or 'in' crowd) spreading make-up at random across Maries' little sisters' face. Her face was essentially a moshpit of combating hues of lipsticks, eyeliner, and foundation. After regaining his composer, and getting the shrieks out of the youngest sister out of his mind, he decided to intervene.

"Just what do you think you're doing?! Let her go this instant!" Edd demanded, forcing the leader of the group to let go of her hair.

"Ohhh but we're just making this freak pretty! What are you even doing in this bathroom loser?" the leader, or Jessica, replied.

Jessica was a newer student who lived in the central melopolitan area of Peach Creek. She was born from a well off family, and was a star cheerleader. Just two months after moving to Peach Creek, she replaced the much friendlier Nazz on the cheerleading team. She was a rather tall girl; she had layered brown hair and wore various school spirit shirts, skin tight bell bottoms, and ugg-boots on most days. Essentially the definition of "popular chick".

"What you're doing isn't human! Look how terrified she is! Do you not see what you're doing?!" Edd replied with a tone similar to an angry father.

"Okay geez, she's not worth our time anyways. Come on girls, we have routines to drill." Jessica said snapping her fingers to her cliché.

Double Dee went over to the sniveling blonde girl to help her up.

"Well, I suggest you wash your face bef-" he was caught off guard by a spontaneous hug.

"Thank-you Double Dee, I don't know what I would have done!" shrieked May in her usual squealing voice.

"Well, I was just performing my duty as a fellow student to stop bullying." he said as she was washing her face. "What's your next class?" he poised.

"Study hall, but I think I need to find one of my sisters." May responded.

"I can assure you that Marie is in the lunch room, maybe you could go talk to her." Edd suggested, smiling a bit for coming up with a good scape goat.

"I think I'll do that, thanks Double Dee!" she exclaimed.

With a goodbye, Edd made his way to the lunch room to find almost all of the seats had been taken. He finally settled with sitting on the end of the table closest to the lunch room exit. After a few moments of relative peace, he was shaken out of his studying daze with a load bang on the table. He looked up to find Marie Kanker had dropped her book bag on the seat in front of him.

"Why h-hello Marie. Can I help you with something?" Edd stammered.

"May told me what you did for her, and I just wanted to say thankyou for standing up for her. I know not many people aside from my sisters and I would have." Marie replied in an unusually sincere voice.

Double Dee was caught off guard a bit by her grammar. He was so used to hearing random utterings and misused pronouns when listening to her.

"It really was no issue, Marie. I was just doing my civil du-" he was once again cut off, only this time with a finger to the lips.

"Just accept the thank you, pumpkin." Marie whispered in a more than sultry voice.

Double Dee whimpered as she grabbed his collar and pulled him in. He was expecting the usual sloppy kiss, but instead was met with a soft, gentle peck on the cheek. And even more surprisingly, he didn't even feel like washing his face after wards.

"I'll see you in third block." Marie said on a high note as she began to walk off towards the shop.

Double Dee continued his lunch as usual, only thinking of the little intervention he had with the blue-haired Kanker.

Marie had just left the lunch room for the shop. About halfway towards the shop, she decided to pay the gym room a visit to see about this 'Jessica' who had tormented her sister. When she opened the door for the gym, she was greeted with the domineering voice of the captain yelling at her squad-mates.

"Mimi! What did I say about bending your knees that far? C'mon! Our first practice is tomorrow!" Jessica practically shrieked through a megaphone.

Marie had at this point reached their position, and placed a tap on Jessica's shoulder.

"What do you want? Can't you see we're practicing here?" Jessica interrogated.

"What the hell do you think you were doing to my sister in the bathroom? You think you're cool picking on the only one of us who won't fight back?" Marie shot back.

"No, we just had an anonymous agreement that your…_sister_ needed a makeover." Jessica replied with snort.

"Oh, you'll get yours, sister." Marie hissed with a pointing finger at Jessica.

With that, Marie walked away from a visibly catatonic Jessica. Everyone, by this point, had learned that it was not wise to mess with the Kankers. It wasn't Marie they feared necessarily, but the wrath of her big sister; Lee. Jessica would soon realize the error of her choice.

After that bit of business was out of the way, Marie found her way into the shop, and although she loved metal working, she couldn't stay focused as the thought of Double Dee coming to the rescue of her sister repeated itself in her head. She had known Double Dee to be a sort of chivalrous man at times, but actually intervening and _stopping_ an act of bullying is something of triumph in her eyes. To her, it just made Double Dee even more lovable. And love she did. What would appear to be just a girl chase boy crush was actually a deeply romantic vision of Maries'. She had long given up the hope of Edd returning the feelings, or even befriending her, but maybe if she appealed to his softer side, and stopped terrifying him she could win him over. Although she does enjoy chasing him down and kissing him, she regrets her and her sister's first impressions on the Eds. Maybe if she wouldn't have had such a bad first impression they would be friends. As the thoughts corroded her mind, she managed to cut herself on a metal grinder.

"Ow! Dammit!" she exclaimed as she kicked the machine. "That _really_ hurt…" she whimpered.

By this time, lunch had ended. She decided to head to the nurses and get a bandage for the rather deep seated cut in her hand. Little did she know that Edd's second block was that of an office assistant, and would be seeing him instead of the aging school nurse.

"Hello again Marie, what can I help you with?" asked Double Dee with enthusiasm, knowing she couldn't pull any stunts this close to the office.

"Double Dee..?" she mused aloud, a bit surprised to see Edd in a nurse outfit. "Well, I cut my palm on a metal grinder." she said while presenting her palm to Edd.

"My, you really did manage to cut yourself." He thought aloud as he examined the wound.

He gathered some gauss and bandaged her hand with caution, as to not aggravate the wound further. As he was wrapping her hand, he couldn't help but notice how soft her pale skin was. He reveled in the fact that he kind of like to hold her hand, and quickly dismissed the thought. Soon after he was done wrapping, and gave her the green light to leave.

As he was about to dismiss her, the second block dismissal bell rang, signaling the students to move onto their third block, of which Edd shared with Marie.

"Hey Double Dee?" Marie said a bit high pitched.

"Yes Marie?" Edd responded whilst taking off his apron and gloves.

"Could you walk me to Ancient History? Since we both have it?" she asked while haplessly kicking her legs back and forth.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt anything to accompany you." Edd mused.

"Alright, just try not to make me look bad catnip." Marie replied with her trademark smirk and a hand across Edd's chin.

As Edd was cleaning up ad getting his supplies ready for next block, he had time to think about how the day had been treating him, weighed his odds, and decided it wouldn't hurt anyone for him to accompany Marie to History.

Or would it?

-Authors Notes-

Spoiler: It won't.

Also, sorry I had to name a character not from the original show, the thought came to me last night in bed, and I decided Nazz would never do that, she's too nice. Let it be known that Jessica won't be an integral piece of the story either, so no worries.

PS: Thinks might get mushy soon, I might hurl just from writing it!

As always, feel free to write a review, all the feedback I can get helps. Thankyou for reading, and hav a grand day


	4. Chapter 4

The walk was not a long one. Nary had a word been spoken by the time they reached 's history class, the room was still mostly vacant. Edd, being the studious guy he is took a seat closest to the board, as to not miss any notes. Marie having mostly free reign over where she could sit decided on sitting in the back, as usual. It wasn't long before the mish-mashed jumble of students piled into the room, disrupting the relative peace with tales of their summer. As Edd was losing hope that he'd have another block with no one to chat with, he witnessed a familiar grinning face. The dopey face was of course, Ed. As he was walking in, he began flailing his arms in Double Dee's direction, as if to signal him for the inbound meeting. Soon after, he sat down beside Double Dee and began telling him about his day.

"….and then, in lunch, Kevin said he didn't want his pudding skins, so he gave them to me Double Dee!" Ed told Double Dee.

"Well, I'm glad you're enjoying your schedule so far Ed, I only hope Eddy is fairing the same." Double Dee said while preparing his pencil to take roll call.

"Oh! I saw him in the hallways. He was saying bad words." Ed informed, as if his parents were listening.

Double Dee let out a sigh. "Well, his day can't be _all_ that bad."

Just as Ed was about to reply, MrsBreeden entered the room, and requested for the roll sheet from Double Dee. This classroom had no more variety than Edd's English class, made up of many different cliques and groups. Although he did notice a distinct lack of students from his own grade, leaving only him, Johnny, and Ed. It appeared as if the majority were made up of class repeats, which did trouble Ed, seeing as he was generally in all AP classes. It wouldn't discourage him from giving the class his all as usual, but since Ed was in there with him, he would probably be doing work for two, or at very least help Ed out.

The clock struck 1:45 p.m. and it was time for the students of Peach Creek High to swap to their fourth and final class of the day. For Edd, this happened to be computer applications. Edd had always been incredibly gifted with book learning, and appeared to have a bright future as an inventor, but computers had never been his focal point. He knew the basics, how to check the memory, install drivers, maybe exchange a case fan or two, but never had the drive to learn everything about a computer inside an out. He figured he might as well take this course if only to become more familiar with the subject. After saying their goodbyes, he and Ed parted ways to their next classes respectively.

Edd took the closest seat to the front as usual, and began to take roll. After that was done, he observed the room around him. What he found was an almost complete lack of students. The only ones he could name were he, Nazz, and oddly enough Rolf. The other _four_ students were freshmen that he didn't care to catch names, even after taking roll. Unsurprisingly, the students who knew each other bunched up, leaving him with the popular ex-cheerleader Nazz, and the loveable foreigner Rolf.

"I trust you have much knowledge about the contraption in front of Rolf, Head-full-of-brains Edboy?" Rolf said in his rather high pitched foreign tongue.

"I'm not the best to run a computer system, no, but I will be happy to assist you in any way I can." Edd responded cheerfully with a smile.

"So like, how do I turn it on?" Nazz asked while examining the computer case.

Edd reached over her and pressed the conveniently hidden power button.

"Thanks dude, I'm so used to the power button being on the front of the thingy." Nazz said without confidence.

"I can assure you it was of minimal effort on my part." replied a smiling Double Dee.

Before the friendly conversation could continue, their tech teacher, , entered the room. At first he came off as threatening, judging by his appearance he was the 'no nonsense' kind of teacher. But soon after he took a seat in his chair and re-adjusted his button-up shirt to a more comfortable arrangement, and said that the kids could do whatever until 3 p.m. hit, any form of fear Edd had had dissipated.

The rest of the class period went on like that. There wasn't much conversation between the three aside from the occasional rambling from Rolf about 'dumb technology. Nazz had opted to spend her time on Amazon looking at new perfumes, and Edd decided to read a few chapters ahead for his history class. The class passed rather peacefully.

By three, the dismissal bell had ringed, and the kids had completed their first day of sophomore year. On the way to his locker, Edd had time to think about how the day had treated him. It had been…interesting, but not bad. He only hoped the remainder of the year would flow by without any more conflict.

After putting up the supplies he no longer needed, he made his way to the parking lot and waited for his friends. It was roughly five minutes before Ed and Eddy arrived, in time for him to hear Eddy complaining of course.

"I just don't see the point in stupid geometry! Not like I wanna be a fuckin' engine-rear or whatever he said." grumbled and obviously upset Eddy.

"Do you kiss your Christmas tree with that mouth mister?" interrogated Ed.

"Oh shut-it Lumpy. Hey Sock head, we ready to go or what?" Eddy said, dismissing Ed's question.

"All ready for launch, Eddy." responded Edd.

"Good, I'm tired of this shit hole." replied an unamused Eddy.

"Come now, Eddy, I'm sure it wasn't _that _bad. You had to have at least learned something." Double Dee said matter-o-factly.

"The only thing I learned is how much I hate frickin' triangles. Can we go home now _mom?" _Eddy said with a small chuckle.

"I suppose." Edd said with a sigh.

The ride remained predominately quiet through town. They had reached the inlet for the cul-de-sac when Eddy poised a question:

"So what are we doin' this weekend?"

"Why, whatever do you mean?" Double Dee said with a raise of his eyebrow.

"We gotta full time escort buddy boy, we should go find a cool new hangout and get some chicks. I don't know about you, but I'm _sick of the filthiness of the junkyard_." the last part he said imitating Double Dee.

"I'll see what work permits." Double Dee answered referring to his weekend job of cleaning windows in town.

"Well alright, good to have you on my side for once Sock head. Whelp, time to go, I'll seeya tomorrow Double Dee.

"Goodbye fellows, I hope you gentlemen have a wonderful evening." he waved as the two teenagers left his car.

Not a minute later he was pulling into his allotted parking spot in his residence. He made his way inside, and decided on some rest and relaxation after a long, _boring _day. He was about to get sit down with a bowl of salad when he heard a ring at the door.

-Author's Notes-

DUNDUNDUN who could it be?

Also, sorry if this one feels rushed. I really wrote it quickly. I'll go back and revise it later.

Another side note; don't expect a chapter every day anymore. It's looking like a long couple weeks of school, but the next chapter should be on here by at least the next weekend. As always, thankyou for reading and reviews are highly encouraged. Goo-DAMMIT MORE THINGS TO SAY. Okay, yes. Uh, sorry for not much of Marie this chapter, it was, as I said, rushed. And for those who don't know it, I plan on trying to make this fic moderately long, even though the chapters aren't too lengthy so far. So the whole "romance" parts won't come for a bit. Anywho, this is unheardassin signing off.


	5. Chapter 5

When Edd arrived at the foot of his door, he pondered who it could be. Unsurprisingly, Ed and Eddy were sporadically banging on his door.

"May I help you two?" asked Edd.

"What's the deal with his stupid Geometry homework anyways? Can ya help us sock head, we're lost?"

"I suppose I co-" Edd began.

"I told ya' he'd say yes! Just make sure to give it back before third block tomorrow, alright?" interrupted Eddy.

Before Edd could respond, the door slammed. He found himself holding his compadres homework, and decided it best to just do it and not cause a fuss. He wasted no time getting his best pencil and sat in the desk within his room and began doing basic geometric problems.

The day had been relatively boring on Maries' end as well. Aside from the few bump in's Double Dee, and the case with May, nothing had happened really. She pondered about how May was haplessly bullied, and wondered if she was always like that. She knew her sister to be a bit insecure when it came to looks, but always figured she'd turn out tough as nails like Lee, at least basing off her attitude at home. She could have just been caught with her pants down, so to speak. Maybe it was a one off occurrence. She hadn't got much of a story from May when she ran up to her during lunch, squealing with joy and crying at the same time. She decided to ask her about it when she got home from tutoring.

When the bell finally rang at Peach Creek High, Marie opted to ride her bike home instead of riding with Lee. She loved her sister, but also loved the peace and relative quiet of isolation. She had always thought of herself as the most individualistic of the Kankers. You had Lee, and while she is a lot smarter than she comes off as, is lazy as a cow and loves to boss her sisters around, and May who is as sweet as a honey suckle sometimes, but most of the time a vulgar follower of Lee. Marie decided long ago that she was the best to do off on her own if it came down to it, and embraced her individuality with pride, as if the blue hair wasn't enough.

Speaking of her hair, blue wasn't her natural hair color, such as it is with Rolf. Her actual hair color was an intensely dark brown, almost black. She dyed her hair some time before moving to the Park'n'Flush, and often regretted it. She often wished to stop dyeing it, but thought of how odd she would look with half brown, half blue hair for a little while. She eventually just settled with keeping it blue, maybe she'd dye it back the coming summer.

The thoughts of summer flourished her while she peddled through Peach Creek commons. She had occupied most of her time working at the local record store, _Music for a Song_. She had absolutely loved the job, but couldn't stay throughout school for obvious reasons. She had managed to save up a good amount to live on, blanketing on four-thousand dollars in the bank. She missed the easy days of summer, the warm breeze, and the late nights with her sisters near the local swimming hole. And although she longed for freedom once more, she embraced the coming of fall, her favorite month.

On the way home, just as she passed the trail way to the trailer park, she opted to go to the creek and fill her diary with her days' memories. The spring before, she started hiding her journals in a local hideaway spot beside the creek, as she had next to no privacy in her trailer. When she reached the creek, she flipped out her aged iPod and tuned into some _Billy Talent_, immersing herself within her thought.

After Edd finished up the geometry homework, he decided it was late enough to make some dinner. It was, after all, 5:30pm. He had decided on macaroni, and began boiling the water soon after. Edd was an exceptionally good cook, but you'd never see the lad admit to it. Not too long of a wait later, he had a steaming bowl of macaroni and went to his computer to looks up some things on Amazon. As he sat scrolling through the pages, he began to think of his parents, or more so, their absence. They've never been around much, but he understood why. His mom was always overseas on medical trips with her research group, and his dad was always either in inner-city Peach Creek, or various other cities during business trips. After Edd had reached the age to responsibly own a phone, they stopped leaving him silly sticky notes for chores, and instead called or texted him with instructions. He rarely received house calls, though, as most of his chores had become ritualistic by this point.

Even though he was home alone 90% of the time, he and his friends usually found themselves in Ed's basement, concocting ideas for adventure like they did when they were younger. They no longer planned "get rich" schemes or schemes at all. They had evolved from that, and now instead planned trips to other counties, refurbishing automobiles from the junkyard, and discussing what they were going to do for their sophomore dance, as they didn't want it to be a huge failure like their freshman ball.

The thought if it sent chills down Edd's spine, both of embarrassment and regret. What had happened was Eddy somehow managed to convince him to remove his hat and _style_ his hair. The style was that of a fifties thug, and merited Edd many laughs that night. The main point of embarrassment was just showing his own head of hair off. It had always been a personal phobia of his, for no apparent reason. He really had nothing to be ashamed of, although he heard some rumors about himself having a deformity of sorts under his hat. He brushed off silly thoughts like that, and settled for just plain not going to this years' dance.

After a few moments of reflection, Marie decided it was time to head home. She had written in her diary many things, from the admittedly small cut she got from the metal belt to Edd staving off bullies in May's defense.

The ride home was short and uneventful. She arrived at an almost empty trailer with the smell of ramen in the air. Lee had dropped off May and went out to her place of work, Locorum_ Parvum Praedum. _She picked up the job over the summer and managed to stay employed to help their mother pay for utilities.

Marie was walking toward the pot of noodles, when she remembered to ask May what had happened.

"So why didn't you pull their hair out?" Marie asked bluntly.

"What?" stuttered May.

"The girls, the cheerleaders, you know! You should have laid some hurt on them; I know you can do it." Marie stated while taking her spot on the couch.

"I just…couldn't…" May drifted out.

Marie began to worry about the tone of her sister's voice. "What do you mean 'couldn't?" Marie asked calmly, genuinely curious.

"I'm not….I'm not _you _or…_Lee._ I don't like being mean, or violent. At first I just thought they were picking fun at me, then the tall one grabbed my hair and…" she began stuttering, before tearing up.

"May, you know we're not how we are because we like it, we have to be! To survive! Kankers gotta' stick together. I know you're not as hard as Lee, and don't expect you to be, but please, at least stick up for yourself." Marie said in a more than motherly tone, honestly surprised with the words she said. Did she really think of herself as mean? Did her _sister _actually think she was mean and tough? She never _wanted_ to be how she is, but after years of bullying at her old school, the chance to build up a new persona at Peach Creek would not pass her by. The brunt of this new person, of course, was her _dear Double Dee._

"I know it's just…I really want to be liked, by anyone." May finished.

Marie didn't know what to say at this point, and opted to just hug her sister instead. The sun was beginning to set, and end the first day of school.

Authors notes:

Sorry If this feels rushed, cause it was. I intended to add more to it, but alas, I have no time. I'll try to finish this area off with a more finite ending sometime this weekend hopefully.

I apologize for spelling mistakes.

Much love, unheardassin.


	6. Chapter 6

Edd's alarm chimed him conscious at the 6:00 AM mark. He sauntered out of his bed, and made his way for the kill-switch on his clock. After he turned off what he assumed to be a local radio talk show, he made sure to check his phone for updates from his parents. Surprisingly, his dear mother only sent one text, and it was one of congratulations about his first day of tenth grade. He decided to take the extra time he had from the lack of chores to keep up his appearance. Edward soon found himself in front of his mirror in his boxers. Although he had gotten taller over the years, he had maintained is slim physique, and lacked any exceptional muscles to speak of. Although he had noticed a slight trail of thin, black hairs leading from his belly button into his nether-regions. The coming of manhood was soon around the corner, a prospect he had been struggling to grasp for the last few months. Was he really to be a grown and graduated man in the coming years? He always fancied himself of higher maturity than he comrades, but never to the extinct of thinking of their future. He decided to let go of these feelings of avoidance and decided to pick up his electric razor and extinguish the stubble that had a knack of growing on the side of his jaws. Side burns were never really his style, although his dear friend Eddy had been letting his come in, and Ed had many scattered hairs around his general neck and cheek area. Unsightly, Double thought, but they are his best friends after all.

After he had finished the de-scruffining of his face, he grabbed a towel and prepared for his morning shower. After thoroughly washing his thick, black hair, and making sure the rest of his person were virtually spotless, he deemed himself appropriate enough to dry off and make way for breakfast and a morning study session.

Edd made his way to the cabinet and grabbed himself a box of _Frosted Flakes_ to serve him as breakfast. It took him around five minutes to down the bowl, and grabbed his computer applications manual. After around 15 minutes of studying, he went to grab the rest of his clothing, as he was currently only wearing a white tee shirt and _Wrangler _blue jeans. He eventually decided on a casual burgundy polo to compliment his casual look, and, again, donned his trademark black ski-hat.

At precisely 7:05 am, he departed his home to start and warm up his car. He usually opted to wait inside, but decided on sitting in his car listening to his favorite band, _Say Anything_, to mentally prepare himself for the long day of arduous studying ahead. After ten minutes of silently musing to himself, he finally heard his back and front passenger seats open, with some dialogue to back it up.

"I'm tellin' ya Ed, there's no way in heck that a chicken could beat a komodo dragon in a fight!" yelled an annoyed Eddy.

"But Eddy! Their beaks! Tell him Double Dee!" cried Ed.

"Listen here monobrow, I have half a mind t-"

"Gentlemen, please! Is this really the time to have such a preposterous argument?" lectured Double Dee.

"All's I'm saying is that a big ass lizard could eat that poultry for dinner, and have room for seconds." said Eddy as he crossed his arms, sitting in the front seat.

"Please, cease this senseless arguing! It's much too early fo-" Double was interrupted.

"Chickens Double Dee!" yelled Ed as he pointed out the window at a flock of geese sailing overhead.

"Actually Ed, those aren't chickens. Although, they do resemble the basic struc-"

"Enough about stupid birds! For the love of me, can we just get this show on the road?" chimed an exhausted Eddy.

"As you wish, Captain McGee." giggled Double Dee.

As he finished the last statement, Double Dee yanked the gear into reverse and got onto the main outing of the cul-de-sac. He then gently pressed the clutch and changed gears to gain some forward momentum. For all the "sissy stuff" Double Dee did, most of the other guys in the neighborhood admired the fact that he had picked a classic five-speed transmission over the simplistic automatic version of his car.

The drive to school was mostly quiet, as the Ed's found themselves immersed within their own thoughts all the while listening to _The Writhing South_ by _Say Anything_. Not too long after the song had finished Double Dee was pulling into the parking lot of the school, right into his parking spot. Eddy let out a slight giggle at the sight of the number "69" printed in the space. Double Dee just managed to let out a slight sigh and put on his parking break.

"Wonderful, time for another day in the freakin' prison…" grumbled Eddy before opening the door with a creak.

"Oh come now Eddy, if you wish to accompany me to the library before first period to brush up on your geometry, do feel free." said a smiling Double Dee.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me, did you finish our homework sockhead?" inquired Eddy.

"Yes, here you go gentlemen. Do not make a habit out of it though, I am a busy man as you know." replied Double Dee, a bit disappointed in his friends lack of motivation.

A few more moments in the car passed before the sound of a distant straight pipe warned them to get inside.

"Why'd you have to get the parking spot beside the Kankers anyways Sockhead?" asked Eddy.

"I assure you Eddy, had it been my choice in the matter we would have parked on the other end of the lot, far away from the terrorizing grasp of the Kankers." Double said with a slight shiver.

The three Ed boys soon found themselves in the lobby of the school, and soon parted ways: Double Dee to the library for a more in depth study session, and Ed and Eddy to the gym to see what the other boys were up to.

After the encounter with Eddy's brother, Mike, the rest of the cul-de-sac children saw Eddy in a different light and instead of seeing a conniving con man, saw a repressed child who only longed for his brothers acceptance and the admiration of others.

The two Eds soon found themselves entered in a morning game of ultimate Frisbee. Needless to say, Kevin and Rolf won because of both of their natural affinity to sports, or at least Kevins'. Although Ed had always been brutishly strong, he never capitalized on it. He never found himself interested in sports, and lacked any coordination to accurately throw any means of ball or frisbee. Although he wasn't a sporty guy, he still accompanied Eddy to the local gym every Wednesday and Friday to spot his little friend.

Eddy was in a similar boat as Ed, without any real talent in sports. Although he had been gifted with great stamina, so he could always keep up with the jocky Kevin, and toned farmboy Rolf. Eddy had also been hitting the gym two days a week for the last six months to get rid of the slight pudge he had left over from his boyhood chubbiness. So between the two, they could at least keep up with the other boys when it came to sports.

While the Eds found themselves immersed in their own worlds of school culture, the three Kankers were cozily seated in their leaders hand-me-down 4runner. It was old, had accumulated enough mileage to circle the world more than a handful of times, it still had an amazing powertrain, and could run circles around many of the modern trucks in its weight category on the trail, even with its old school 4 speed manual transmission.

"Lee! We're gonna be late for first period!" exclaimed a distraught May.

"Can it Bucky! We still got ten minutes before any of the bells ring, so just let me focus alright?" yelled Lee in response.

As the youngest and eldest sisters argued, Marie found herself listening to the song _Diamond on a Landmine_ by _Billy Talent._ She watched out the window as a slight drizzle fell over head, and couldn't help but think about how it would feel for a guy to be that obsessed over her. Just then, thoughts of the brainy Ed boy filled her mind. She had always known he was the different one, always so nice and gentlemanly, and if his defense of May wasn't a sign of this she didn't know what was. There were many nights when Marie found herself wondering if Double Dee felt anything but fear of her. She knew that on the outside, it appeared as a simple girl hood crush, but over the years, it had evolved to so much more, and she was stuck in a cycle of wondering if he had ever felt the same. If her musings in her diary weren't enough to prove her affliction, she didn't know what was. She felt a slight wiggle in her stomach at the thought of someone finding her diary on the side of the creek, and reading its encryptions, even though she knew it was completely secure within the recess of a tree root system.

"What do you think Marie?" the gruff voice of Lee shook her out of her day dreams.

"Huh, what? Oh well….whatever you said Lee." replied a stuttering Marie, wishing to avoid confrontation that morning.

"Yeah that's what I thought, now as I was saying…" Lee continued to tell May.

Marie simply wondered if this year was going to prove different from the last couple years at Peach Creek. She had already made a promise to herself to try and break down the walls of her anti-social behavior and make peace with the rest of the kids. Mainly, the one she deemed the most excluded, the boy with the black ski hat she had grown to adore.

Her thoughts were further interrupted when the gears grinded to a halt and Lee initiated the parking break right next to Double's civic.

"Well girls, we best be on our way. Try not to get picked on too much this time, eh May?" Lee chuckled to herself.

The girls soon found themselves within the same lobby the Eds were moments before, and soon found themselves separated as well. Minutes later, the first period bells rang, and Marie made her way to the first class of the day.

Authors' notes: Hey guys, long time no upload. It's been a crazy year, so much has changed. I finally decided it was time to kick this puppy up again. I am infinitely sorry for leaving you all hanging for so long. I really appreciate all the feedback, and look forward to writing more chapters in the future. Also, sorry I got a little in detail about the Eds' bodies today lol, I feel it needed to be said the Eddy was rather thin a toned now, Ed is still kinda chunky but has some cannon arms and shoulders, and Double Dee has a swimmers physique but less toned. Thanks guys, and I promise to get back and write some more asap, but note I still have to balance school and work. Thanks for sticking around guys, I love ya. Also, sorry for grammar mistakes.


	7. Chapter 7

Soon after the morning bell had rang throughout the hallways, children began to fill their various classes to begin their day. Double Dee was, of course, the first to enter his English classroom and begin prepping for the day ahead. Not long after other adolescents began flooding the classroom and assumed their seats from yesterday. Double Dee had just finished reorganizing his writing folder and managed to look up right at the same time as Marie had opened the door. He promptly avoided eye contact with the Kanker, and waited for her to eventually sit down right behind him. He was in the process of making sure his pencils all had fine points when Marie posed a question;

"So what are you doing in a normal class anyways catnip?" she asked without really paying attention.

While it was true Double Dee had been a mostly AP and honors student in the previous years, his counselor decided it be better for him to ground himself the first semester and "take it easy" as to prepare for the coming years of ACT and SAT tests. Not that he didn't have AP courses the following semester, it just so happened that a lot of his "filler" classes came up within the first semester.

"O-oh well, you see, our school counselor convinced me that it'd be better for my academic future if I studied a broader range of average skill classes, and keep myself kept up with the rest of the school's curriculum instead of my focal study points." answered Double Dee matter-o-factly.

"Oh okay, well I guess that makes sense then. You gotta' extra pencil I could use this block? I'll be sure to give it back during third." she replied with another question.

"Why, of course you can have a pencil." Edd happily replied.

He gave her a pencil precisely when the teacher had decided to show up. He had decided that they would be taking notes to prepare for a coming writing exam in the spring, and let them have the last twenty-five minutes or so the "reflect" as he called it on the notes, which in student terms meant chit chat till the bell rings.

Double Dee had, to no one's surprise, actually taken the time to look over the previous notes and absorb the techniques one more time before he left the classroom. About half way through the notes, he felt someone twirling a longer strand of his hair. This sent shivers down his spin, in a bad way of course.

"Um, Marie, p-please refrain from touching my hair." pleaded Double Dee, as he hated when people touched his hair.

"But why would I do that, when I could do this?" responded Marie as she grated up and down the back of Edd's head, even going under his ski hat.

This sent even more shrills to go down Double Dee's body, and caused him to turn around to stop the assault as he would call it.

"Your continuous badgering of my hair is taking away from my studying, please stop touching my hair." Double Dee demanded shakingly.

"Ohhh-kay, calm down there stiff, I was just teasing. It's just hair ya know." Marie replied as she removed her hand and went back to doodling in her English journal.

The last thing she said stuck with Double Dee though, because she mostly right; it was just hair. Why was he always so nervous about anyone seeing it? Sure it was pretty thick, but it wasn't even shoulder length, and he kept it very clean with his daily showers. In the past, he would wear his ski hat for comfort, these days it's just become a norm that he can't really defend. Anyways, he felt kind of bad about snapping at Marie, so he decided to turn around and apologize.

"Marie, I did not mean to come off as stingy; I just really don't like others toying with my hair." Double Dee said genuinely.

Before she responded, Edd managed to look down and notice what she was drawing. It was a rather detailed picture of what appeared to be an engine, the only definable symbol being a Chevy racing logo on the front panel.

"Ahh its okay Double Dee, you know I can't stay mad at you." Marie said without looking up from her sketch.

Without thinking, Double Dee made a comment about her doodle.

"That is a neat looking uh….engine?" Double Dee pondered. He knew a decent amount about smaller car engine blocks, and perfectly understood the concept of torque power, but he wasn't very apt on much car terminology or specific manufactures, outside of Hondas at least.

"Oh, well this is a Chevy LT5 5.7 liter V8 Double Dee. One of the best engines ever made I tell ya." Marie said, demonstrating her knowledge of American cars.

"Well I think that sketch is very creative and detailed Marie. I assume you enjoy working with vehicles?" Double Dee cheerfully asked, excited to find that the blue haired Kanker has another hobby besides pestering him and his friends.

"Well, yeah I guess I do. My mom's brother really taught me a lot about cars, so I guess that's what really got me interested. He was always a Chevy guy, so I suppose that bias kinda got passed to me? I dunno, alls' I know is that I like their engines." Marie mused without thought. "But I do like any car, as long as it runs I guess."

Double Dee was rather confused; he was actually having a conversation with the monster he assumed was only ever interested in one thing. His was a feeling of interest in the Kanker, or more precisely in her interests. To his disbelief, she was actually demonstrating human qualities.

"Well that's a very intriguing interest, Marie. I know how it feels to be heavily involved in one, if not many topics. It is especially helpful when you have a natural talent for said topic before going into study. Have you taken the auto-body shop classes yet?" asked a smiling Double Dee.

Marie was feeling an interesting vibe as well, she wasn't used to just talking like normal people with anyone but her sisters or her mother, so she made sure to answer Double Dee with all honesty.

"Yeah, I'm taking the second course this semester for second period class. Although we haven't done too much as far as actually working on cars yet, it being only our second day, I imagine we'll just be refreshing our stuff from last year." Marie replied, using her mis-matched vocabulary.

"Well that is good to hear, I'm glad you're capitalizing on your abilities." said Double Dee, still with a slight smile on his face.

"Say Double Dee, you have your license, what kind of car do you drive again?" Marie asked, genuinely interested.

"Oh, well if you look outside the school, you'll find I drive a relatively old Honda civ-" he was cut off by Maries' laughter.

"Oh, did I…did I miss some sort of joke?" asked a confused Double Dee.

"Oh no, it's just that I pictured you in one of those 'riced' civics my uncle used to tell me about all the time. But I've seen ya in it before; I know you've got a plain-Jane car. But it looks like you take care of it. Is it automatic?" replied Marie, almost positive he'd say yes being the novice she assumes he is.

"No actually, my father made sure to start me on a vehicle with a manual transmission so I can always appreciate the driving experience. I've also gotten quite proficient at changing gears as well, I find it calming to feel the gears gracefully change over; it's a marvel of technology really." replied an enthusiastic Double Dee.

Although to a commoner it seemed like nothing, plenty of people drive stick shift these days still, but Marie found it really attractive that Double Dee would use his extensive vocabulary to describe his fondness of driving, she never imagined him finding such tranquility in driving.

"Wow, that's a mouthful huh?" she managed to say before realizing the rudeness in the context, "Not that it makes it any less true though! I've never heard someone describe it like that Double Dee, good job." she repaired any venom from her last saying.

"Well, yes, thank you Marie. Do you not have your license yet? I always assumed we were rather close in age." Double Dee inquired.

"Nah mom won't let me get it till I have a steady job again for insurance. But I do know how to drive, though, just not uhh legally." she smirked.

"Ah yes, I know what you mean. Insurance can be quite the burden to the adolescent who is unpre-" he was cut off by the ring of the bell.

"Well it was nice talking to ya Double Dee, thanks for the pencil and sorry for messing with your hair." Marie teased before imitating the form of shifting into second gear and walking out of the room.

Double Dee then found himself wandering into the lunch room, still hating his post first block lunch schedule, it baffled him to no end. He had managed to make a peanut butter and banana sandwich before he departed his home that morning, so he opted to eat it promptly before revising his Ancient History notes from the day before.

Around the same time Marie was on her way to lunch as well, but decided to enjoy to soon retreating warm late summer air and eat in the outside student lounge. Most of the time, it was occupied by the sports orientated students, or those looking for inspiration for the arts, but when she arrived to the seating area she found it void of any life. She found tranquility in isolation, and began eating her school provided free lunch.

The forty-five minute lunch block seemed to fly as Double Dee studied. When the second period class bell rang, he made his way to the office to sort files or whatever busy work the vice principal hooked him up with. Today just happened to be lobby door duty, meaning he had to buzz people in through the front door. Needless to say, this block was filled with a lot of sitting on his phone researching the migration habits of geese, as the events from that morning had peaked his curiosity.

At the same time as Edd's plight, Marie found herself equally bored sitting in the back of her auto-body II class. The class was a mixture of first and second time takers, so most of what was being taught she already knew. The only other person of note in this class was Kevin, and even he seemed to be on the verge of sleeping. Marie eventually began sketching again, although this time it wasn't an engine, or a car, but rather a familiar sock head. She eventually fell into the same daze she was in that morning imagining them lying down in a field together, talking about their future.

Although she knew that it wasn't anything more than a pipe dream, she felt as though she was making it closer to his hear the last two days, and looked forward to being in the same room as him again during the next block, if she could only get through this snore fest of a class. She soon settled with sketching out more engines, and eventually fell asleep on her desk.

The third block bell finally rang throughout the halls of Peach Creek High, and a shuttle of teenagers promptly found themselves gathered in the hallways, as the south wing had break today. This, much to Double Dee's delight, gave him the opportunity to talk with his best pal Eddy.

"I'm tellin ya Sockhead, geometry's no good for me. I think I'd rather take that stupid banking class again than sit through another of Mr. Lewis's lectures on 'the importance of circumcision' or whatever he said." Eddy complained. "I just can't stand it Double Dee, what's the point."

"Come now Eddy, surely there is some aspect of geometry that you don't abhor?" Double Dee said, not bothering to correct his mistake in pronouncing 'circumcenter'. "If not, at least try to pass it so we can be on the same level next year?" Double Dee pleaded.

"Yeah yeah, whatever Socko. So I was thinking if it stops raining, you, me, and Lumpy all go out to the swimming hole and enjoy the creek one last time before the cold weather comes in. What do ya say?" Eddy offered.

"Well, I have exceeded my studying, so I've plenty of free time. So yes, if it stops raining, we can go to the creek later. It'd be a good way to relinquish in the remaining warmth of summer." Double Dee responded with a sigh.

"Heck, why not just go if it was raining anyways? We were gonna get wet anyways right?" Eddy seemed to have an internal battle.

On that note, the break bell had rang and the teens went their separate ways, looking forward to that evening.

Double Dee had reached his third block class and of course took the front seat. When Marie had entered though, she promptly noticed that the back seats had been taken up by the sporty crowd, as it was in her first block. So she opted to just sit in the front seat to the left of Edd.

About twenty minutes into the class, Kevin, who was sitting 3 seats length behind Double Dee made a remark that made the rest of the class laugh, and the teacher soon asked him to switch spots with Double Dee for the day, much to poor Eds dismay of his buddy moving seats.

After Double Dee had moved back, he returned to listening to the teacher as focused as he was earlier when a sight out of the corner of his eye pulled him away from the instructor's words. It wasn't a large indicator, or anything that seemed promiscuous, but it had managed to catch the hormones in Double Dees young body's attention. The way Marie had been sitting was doing well to arch her pack, making her bottom stick out ever so slightly on her seat, as though she was leaning forward. Edd had never noticed the young girl's curvaceous body as much as he had just then, and always considered himself gentlemen enough to not 'check out the dames' as Eddy would put it. But something about the way she was sitting really aroused young Double Dee and it was enough to pull his attention away from the lecturer.

That is, until she turned around to grab her small purse off the ground. Although accidently, she managed to catch Double Dee eye-for eye before he quickly looked away, acting as if he was reading his text book. He soon broke out in one of his trademark nervous sweats. Marie had known she had just caught him staring, but wasn't mad. Rather, she was happy he noticed her for something other than fear, and relaxed a little more in her chair so he wouldn't get so distracted and nervous. She let out a slight giggle at the thought of the chivalrous Edward checking her out, and idled herself on that thought till the class had concluded.

Double Dee essentially marched right by Marie to get out of the room, only to be tailed by Ed.

"Double Dee! It's been so long!" Ed cried as he hugged his pal from behind, referring to Double Dee being moved so early in the class period.

"Oh Ed, I'm sure Mrs. Breeden won't place me in the rear desks tomorrow. Rest assured we will sit next to each other tomorrow friend." Double Dee reassured his friend.

After a few minutes of idle chatter between the two friends, the second bell indicated it was time to kick it into high gear to make it to class. Double Dee soon found himself in the relaxed computer room, with a menial task of running a diagnostics test on his assigned computer for a daily grade.

"This machine can count my eggs yes? Even before the hatch?" Rolf inquired while inspecting the computer chassis from all angles.

Nazz just replied with a shoulder shrug and continued looking on Amazon. Double Dee was the first to answer his question.

"Well, I don't know about your eggs specifically, Rolf, but I do know that there are some farmers guide websites that can help predict how many eggs your chickens could hatch under certain conditions." Double Dee said, trying to help poor clueless Rolf.

"Ahh yes, Nana will be so proud of this son of a Shepard if he can tell her how many eggs are to come. We haven't had a prediction like that since the old country yes? This machine will make a witch of Rolf I tell you!" Rolf replied with a clueless smile and scratch of his chin.

After finishing the assigned project, Double Dee began browsing the web, mainly interested in the weather predictions for that winter. This went on till the evening bell signaled them to go home after a few minutes' worth of announcements.

Double Dee made his way to his car and waited for his friends to arrive. Whilst waiting, he saw all three Kankers making their way to their car. He shrunk in his seat, not wanting to be harassed about the earlier events, without even knowing if Marie had actually caught him or not. Soon after they got in Lee's truck and began pulling out, Double noticed Marie shoot him a quick stare from her position in the back seat. Surely it was a mistake, he thought. But his thoughts were soon interrupted by the opening of his passenger side doors.

"Well Sockhead, we going or what?" the brash voice of Eddy inquired.

"Why of course Eddy, we'll need to stop at the cul-de-sac first though, to gather our bathing suits of course." Double Dee responded.

"Yeah yeah, let's just go before it starts raining again."

And with that, they made their way to their homes to gather their swimming gear and eventually meet up at the lane to walk to the creek. Unbeknownst to them, a certain Marie Kanker just so happened to be making a trip to her spot to add some chapters about the day into her journal.

Authors' Notes:

Whoop! A kinda long chapter, by my standards at least. I really hope this is sating your appetite for fanfics, and that I'm writing it okay. I don't really know my style or anything, and I'm practicing writing more dialogue and stuff as well, as a lot of this is just exposition and stuff…I think. Anyways, please enjoy, and remember; reviews encourage me to write more!


	8. Chapter 8

After a brisk stop at their respective homes to pick up their swimwear, the boys had decided that they would all meet at the entrance of the lane and walk to the creek proper together. It didn't take the boys too long to find their attire, and the promptly found themselves at the front of the lane.

"Well boys, we ready to send off summer once and for all?" asked Eddy as he began leading the troop to the water.

"But Eddy, when will he be coming back?" inquired a worrisome Ed.

"Oh Ed, you know summer will return after this school year, we go over this every August." replied Double Dee.

The boys continued to talk amongst themselves until they reached their destination. They found their spot practically untarnished since their last visit earlier in the summer.

"Hey Sockhead, you remember that time we made that 'luxury cruise liner' back in middle school?" Eddy asked as he removed his shirt and shoes.

"Yes I fondly remember that venture Eddy; I also remember it being tarnished by the Kanker sisters." Double quickly replied.

"Yeah, good times aye boys?" Eddy said, "Speaking of the Kankers, what's the deal with May getting picked on? Isn't that, like, against their religion or something?"

"Yes, I have pondered this as well Eddy; quite out of character for a rough-and-tumble character such as May to succumb to bullying with nary a whimper." Double Dee mused, "I believe it was a result of expectations placed upon our freshmen body. You know it was her first day of high school correct?"

"Ahh whatever Sockhead, just don't go playin' Knightly-McGoody-Twoshoes when I'm around, dig?" Eddy replied.

"Whatever you say, Eddy." Double Dee said, rolling his eyes.

During their small conversation, Ed had been digging through the bushes and found their old swing rope.

"Ahh! I found a snake!" yelled Ed, "I think it likes me." he said as the rope coiled around his fore arm.

"Hey! Lumpy found the old rope, I call first swing!" said Eddy as he pushed through the bushes.

Eddy grabbed the decaying rope and ran back before running full speed toward the creek. At the very edge, he jumped, but the years had not been good to the twine rope and it snapped mid-air, causing Eddy let off far sooner than intended. He managed to land on a small sandbar right off the drop of the edge of the creek.

"Shit!" Eddy yelled as he grabbed his leg, "I nailed the damn land!"

"Eddy, don't you think you're being a little over dramatic? Just drag yourself to the shore and I'll look at it." Double Dee replied.

Eddy dragged himself through the shallow water and eventually made it to the shore. He promptly lifted his leg to the front of his person for Double Dee to observe. What Double Dee managed to see was that his foot hadn't landed on solid dirt, but rather wet sand, but the bottom of his foot had managed to brush against a sharp object, causing a minor cut.

"Oh the horror!" Ed shrieked as he held onto his head.

"Make sure.." Eddy coughed "Make sure my brother doesn't take my magazines." Eddy whimpered, feigning death.

"Eddy, I see you breathing." Double Dee said, crossing his arms.

"Maybe if we take his hand we could summon Evil Tim without all the cro-" Ed was interrupted.

"Oh shut up Lumpy, let's go swimmin' already." Eddy grumbled as he wiped sand off his back.

And with that, the boy all went in the water, without the assistance of a rope.

Not long after Eddy had "injured" his foot, Marie was making her way toward her own secret spot to right some memoirs in her journal. As she approached the small forest separating the creek from the cul-de-sac, she heard splashing and the voices of boys talking amongst themselves. She hadn't paid it much mind till she heard the voice of her beloved Double Dee.

"I just don't find her that attractive." she heard Double Dee say defensively, "She is pretty young woman, but I just don't want to be one to seek a woman for…'that'"

"Oh come on Sockhead, who do you think you're foolin'? You're a teen just like the rest of us ya know." she heard the loud mouth of Eddy reply.

"Double Dee is right Eddy, Nazz is yucky!" the dopey voice of Ed rang through the air.

"Now Ed, I never said she was anything but go-"

"Well what don't you find about her attractive huh? She's got a smokin' body, long blonde hair, perfect teeth and hell, she actually talks to us some time! What separates you from the rest of the neighborhood huh?" Eddy interrupted.

Marie had not intended to eaves drop, but the subject of her Double Dee's attraction had peaked her interests. The "discussion" continued.

"While I will admit that Nazz is a very pretty young woman, and is one of the friendliest at our learning institution, I'm afraid it's her…um…intelligence that I find lacking. And besides that point, we are on completely different planes in terms of social niche, what's the point of having this conversation?" Double Dee said with a slight blush, not used to talking about his attractions.

"So our sweet lil'Double Dee likes brainy girls huh? What about that one Asian girl in our Algebra class freshmen year? You think she was hot?" Eddy inquired.

"Eddy, that girl couldn't even understand us. And I'm not even making a racial slur; she actually could not speak English. Although she was gifted in reading the concepts of abstract alg-"

"Enough!" Eddy yelled, "I hear enough about algebra in school alright? Let's just turn on some music or something."

Eddy then went to the bag he had packed with various items and pulled out his mp3 and a small speaker dock. He scanned his music for a few seconds before landing on _American Trash _by Innerpartysystem. The vibrant song rang throughout the surrounding area.

Marie eventually decided that she had heard enough, and continued her venture to her own private spot by the creek. She then checked under familiar trees' roots, and found a trash bag. From within she pulled out her black journal. The material on the front and back covers had been fabricated from leather, and looked a bit tarnished and felt soft from the heat of the trash bag. Not long after, she began writing about the previous day's events, and even added intricate details to visualize the importance of some. Particularly the incident with May.

Marie had thought about that a lot the last two nights, and was immensely worried about her sister's well-being. She had never imagined her sister taking any kind of punishment from anyone, ever. And the thought alone really boiled her blood. Although, the more she thought about it the more the answer became clear; May has a reputation already in high school even just being a freshmen, because of her last name. Marie's best guess on why she was targeted was probably just a test, to see if May was like her older sisters. Without a doubt, Marie would be talking it over with Lee when she got home, she can't let her sister become a typical helpless blonde, and refuses to see her as such. She made sure to add that to her journal.

After a few more sentences pertaining the conversation she overheard, Marie decided it was time enough to go home, as she had a couple projects to work on at home dealing with cars. Particularly, a 1980 Chevy Nova she had been tasked with tasked with restoring. It was in rough condition, but the internals were mostly intact, but the body and interior had major damage and deterioration. It was currently being stashed in a pop-up garage behind her caravan. She stowed her journal in the same place it had been beforehand, and made her trek back to the Park-n-Flush trailer park.

Meanwhile, the Eds were still discussing mundane "high school drama" topics and the like.

"I just don't see it happenin' Double Dee, not with me around at least." Eddy said, full of truth.

"I'm sure you're existence wouldn't affect Kevin's ability to take your esteemed Nazz on casual dates." Double Dee replied with a smirk.

"Whatever Sockhead, you couldn't get a girl if you tried!" yelled Eddy in defense.

"I'll have you kn-"

"Girls are bad for Ed!" their dopey friend yelled before bobbing under water.

Both Double Dee and Eddy let out a sigh. Double Dee then noticed the sun on the verge of the tree lines, a close sign that the night was soon to come.

"Well gentlemen, it's been fun, but I'm afraid I have some chores and homework to do, I'll see you two tomorrow morning." Double said as he made his way toward the towel bag.

"Not so fast Socko, you're helping us carry stuff back to my house." Eddy demanded.

With that, all the boys, including an air-starved Ed, gathered to the shore to begin packing. Not long after they all made their way to the cul-de-sac.

"So what, do you guys wanna come play games at my house or somethin'? My mom bought this pizzas that cook in no time and I was thinking we could all beat that "Master Chief" collection I got for Christmas last year." Eddy asked.

"Sounds like a plan Stan!" yelled Ed.

"Geez Ed, I'm supposed to be the one who yells ya know. What about you Sockhead, you in?"

"I'm afraid not gentlemen, I believe my father texted me to re-arrange his tools in the garage before he comes home briefly tonight. Maybe another time?" replied Double Dee.

"Ehh sure, whatever you say Sockhead, I'm sure you are just needing some time alone with your girlfriend 'Palmala Handerson'!" Eddy laughed.

"Oh ha-ha Eddy. I assure you that is not why I need to be home." Double said with a drawn out sigh.

"Yeah yeah, well thanks for helping carry our shit at least, seeya later Double Dee." Eddy waved as they approached the inlet of the cul-de-sac. The boys soon departed, with Ed and Eddy making their way to Eddy's personal entrance in his back yard.

Double Dee made his way to his house and prepared to re-arrange his father's tool set. The rest of his evening was laid back, as he watched Mythbusters on Netflix.

Meanwhile, in the Kankers trailer, Lee and Marie were plotting an interrogation.

"Okay, so that's the plan alright?" Lee asked in her gruff voice.

"Alright, alright, whatever you say Lee, let's just get to the bottom of it." Marie said in a whisper.

The two Kankers then made their way to the living room to find their youngest sister watching TV. Lee took the lead as she stood in front of the TV.

"Lee move your butt, I'm watching the monster truck rally!" May yelled in her nasally voice.

"May, we need to talk." said Lee as she muted their 70's style television.

"What the hell happened with that pretty girl in the bathroom? What happened to the wrestling-lovin' sister we used to have? Have ya gone soft on us?" Lee demanded.

"I just don't see what the big deal is! They caught me with my pants down, literally, and there were nine of them! What was I supposed to do?" May yelled in reply.

"Well you could have at least went out fighting, cause now big sisters gonna have ta' handle it. Unless you wanna help and show them you're not gonna let them shovel shit in your mouth again." Lee gruffed out.

"Yeah, you could have at least left a few bruises May; now they think you're an easy target." Marie put in.

"You know what, you girls are right!" May yelled as she stood up, "Let's teach her a lesson."

"Her? I thought it was a group?" Lee asked.

"She means that one cheerleader, Jessica or something; she is the 'leader' of that little posse." Marie answered.

"Well alright, were does this Jessica character live eh? We can give her the ol'Kanker one-two!" Lee asked.

"Her dad owns the tuxedo rental place beside the candy shop, so I think she'd live in that apartment above." May put in.

"Well alright girls, we're in business! Grab your masks, and Marie, get your spray paint." Lee ordered.

"But wouldn't it be better to just pick a fight with her in the middle of the hallway or something?" Marie asked moving her finger to her lip.

"No Marie, we gotta leave her group a message. That Kankers are off limits!" Lee shouted in a rally.

"Yeah! Let's get em' Lee!" her blonde sister followed.

Although Marie was upset with the ones to blame for her sisters' harassment, she didn't think marking her building or egging her house was gonna leave the right kinda message and would much rather make it personal and just beat her head in. But to not face the wrath of Lee, she tagged along anyways, taking cover in the shroud of darkness to the market street of town. When they arrived, Lee pulled out a roll of toilet paper and some eggs.

"Alright girls, try not to hit the windows, we don't wanna wake our little princess." Lee said as she took aim with an egg.

The trio then hurled a barrage of eggs and toilet paper at the upper floor of the building, and when they were done; Lee decided that they should give her Scion a "make-over" too. They then proceeded to pelt her car with the remaining eggs, and spray paint the wheels a vibrant pink.

"Well girls, I think our work is done. What do you think May?" Lee asked triumphantly.

"Just one more thing and it will be perfect." May said as she pulled out a baked potato and placed it in their mailbox with the flag down. "Okay, we can leave now."

Her sisters stared at her confused.

"Okay I'm gonna be the one to ask, but what's with the potato?" Marie questioned.

"Don't worry about it okay? Let's just go." May said as she walked by her blue haired sister.

Lee and Marie just shot a glance at each other and shrugged their shoulders. They then made their way in unison to the trailer they called up. The walked in the door right as the clock struck nine in the afternoon. Lee soon took her usual spot on the couch and command of the remote controller.

"May! Make yourself useful and grab me a diet coke will ya?" Lee ordered.

"Get it yourself Lee!" May shouted back.

"Oh c'mon, get some exercise, it's good for ya!" Lee yelled to May.

May had succumbed to her sisters' will and gotten her and herself a soda and plopped down on the couch. Marie had decided to go back upstairs and listen to music till she deemed it was time for sleep.

After around fifteen minutes of sitting in her room, she had gotten cabin fever and decided on taking a walk around the neighboring cul-de-sac, as it was a warm night and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. She figured her sisters would eventually fall asleep on the couch anyways, so she didn't bother going out the front door and went down the side of the trailer instead.

Marie had walked through the construction site and past the playground when she entered the cul-de-sac proper. She stood on the sidewalk in front of Kevin's house when she noticed something poking out of Double Dee's window across the street. He appeared to be star gazing and taking notes. Marie sat back and watched him for a few minutes, before finally deciding to make an appearance.

"Hiya Double Dee! Whatcha doin?" she yelled from his yard.

Double Dee jerked back and hit his head on the window seal, causing it to fall with a crack on his telescope. He eventually stood back up and re-lifted his window to offer a response.

"Marie! It's late, what are you doing at my place of residence?" Double Dee yelled as he rubbed the back of his head.

Marie decided to capitalize on his awkwardness around girls.

"I just came by to make sure my little oven-mitt wasn't lonely is all! Honest!" she pleaded in a less than sincere voice.

"I highly doubt that's the cause of your visit Marie," Double Dee said with a raised eyebrow.

"Okay! You caught me, I was going for a walk, stop the presses!" Marie replied while raising her hands in a guilty stance, "But really, what are you doing Edward?"

The use of his proper name shook Double Dee a little, only being addressed as it by his parents and relatives.

"I was tracking the movement of the comet Lovejoy throughout our neighboring solar system." Double Dee said, adjusting his telescope.

"Lovejoy huh?" Marie said, rubbing her chin, "Can I come up and look at it?"

"Well um..m-mother would be mad if she found out I had girls in the house this late so I'm afraid I can-"

"I don't see any cars in your garage besides yours dreamboat, so can I come up or not?" she said with a smirk.

"Fine, I suppose if it's for the greater good of knowledge, yes, you can come look at the comet. I'll unlatch the door for you." he stammered out before making his way to the front door.

From the outside, a quick succession of locks could be heard unlocking, followed by the creak of the door opening.

"You can come on in I suppose, mind the step please." Double Dee almost whimpered out as he stepped to the side so the blue haired Kanker could come in.

"This is a nice place you got here Double Dee, so clean." Marie commented admiring the main living area of Edd's house.

"Thankyou Marie, the telescope is set up right up stairs in my room." Double Dee explained as he shuffled her up the stairs.

"Double Dee, you haven't even bought me dinner yet, you salty dog!" Marie teased as they ascended the stairs.

By the time they had reached Edd's room, he was already sweating out of nervousness. He had never had a girl in his home, let alone his room. He never imagined willingly letting Marie of all people be the first. Marie decided that she had teased the poor Ed boy enough for the time being and made her way towards Edd's make shift observation deck at his window.

"Just let me adjust the calibrations and…there, you should have perfect site of the comet Lovecraft." Double Dee stammered out.

Marie pushed aside the bangs that draped over her right eye and peeked into the telescope. What she saw was a stunning display of lights and a slowly moving white object, trailed by a fading white tail.

"Wow! It's beautiful Double Dee!" Marie exclaimed, "Is it close to us at all, or is it in some other galaxy?" she asked without removing herself from the lens.

"It's actually making its way past Saturn for the next couple of weeks, then it's going to slingshot around the sun and makes its way back out into the unknown!" Double Dee happily exclaimed, getting caught up in the science of it all.

"Geez Double Dee, don't cream yourself," Marie said with a chuckle. "Well, I guess I can mark this off of my bucket list." she said as she draped an arm over his shoulder.

"Why, yes, I suppose you can." Double Dee said in a nervous tone while he scratched the back of his head.

"So what do you do all day in here anyways? Just a lot of reading?" Marie inquired as she scanned the room.

"Nothing in particular, the same old thing any responsible adolescent should I suppose." Double Dee replied honestly.

"Well I can make a guess at what other teens do, and I doubt you're sitting in here doing that all day." she let out with a small chuckle and quick glance to Edd's hand.

"W-well call me out of ordinary I suppose because I'm certainly not doing….that all day." a beet red Double Dee replied.

"Ah! But you didn't say you _don't_ do it!" Marie further teased.

"Now I will draw the line right their miss-"

Marie silenced him with her finger and leaned into his ear.

"I'm just kidding dreamboat," she whispered and pulled away, "It was nice seeing you tonight Double Dee, have fun with your comets and such. I'll see you tomorrow in first block tomorrow, okay?"

"Why yes, it is getting kind of late isn't it? Stay safe Marie, I'll be sure to look at all the stars in the sky for you in your absence." Double Dee replied in a moderately sarcastic tone.

"What, no goodnight kisses?" Marie said before she left the room.

Before Edd could stammer on anymore, she let out a simple "goodnight" and descended the stairs. Double Dee took the time needed to put up his observation equipment and close his window before he thought about what just happened. He just had an encounter with a person who had been antagonistic towards him and his friends for years and it didn't end horribly. In fact, he figured it was rather pleasant, awkward, but pleasant. And as cliché as it came off in his mind, he couldn't lie to himself and say that Marie didn't look good in the pale of the moonlight, it seemed to complement her skin tone. He had also noticed, as she arched into the telescope, it gave him a chance to check out the arch in her back. The more he thought about her curves and arches, the dirtier he felt. Although, maybe burning old bridges was a good thing. Had he truly been blinded by past events and not met the true Marie Kanker? These thoughts coursed through his mind until he eventually found solace in his bed.

Much the same could be said about Marie. As she walked towards her home, she thought about the events that just occurred. She truly thought when she asked to come in he would put up a fight and eventually just out right refuse, but he actually caved. And all the while when she was teasing him, he remained gentlemen. This further increased her personal opinion on the brainy Ed boy, and when she finally arrived at her trailer, and crawled into bed, she couldn't get her mind off of her "dreamboat".

And thus another day in Peach Creek had ended. Unforeseen tensions were on the rise in two hormonal teens, and the gap that has plagued them in the past was finally beginning to be filled. As the moon circled the planet, the two teenagers had many thoughts running through their easily and hormonally influenced minds. What would their friends think if this escalated into something _more_? What would the rest of the neighborhood-no, the school body think? Only time could tell, even if it would turn into anything other than just a friendship. And on this note, they would arise for another day of school and tension.

Authors' notes: So I went all day sitting around and felt really bad so here's this!

I dunno if it's good or not, so feel free to review. I think this chapter had a lot more dialogue than the recent two chapters, so tell me how that turned out. It's really hard for me to put myself in their positions (especially Marie cause she's a girl) and hope I did it well enough for you guys.

Also, a side note, I really don't know where to go with the whole May being bullied fiasco, but I guess it's a sub-plot for now. Expect it to be cleared up in the next few chapters or so. Thankyou for your encouraging reviews and messages as well! They really motivate me to write more, and better chapters. Please have a grand day/night.


	9. Chapter 9

Marie's day began with the grating sound of her alarm clock. She pulled herself out of bed and began her morning ritual to prepare for school, which began with her morning shower. She always managed to get up earlier than her sisters so she could get first dibs on the shower, so her day started at a brisk 5:45 in the morning. After a quick shower, she checked her face for blemishes to which she found none outside a few blackheads in the typical places. She brushed her teeth soon after, and almost as if it was on a timer she heard banging on the bathroom door.

"Marie! Hurry up in there, I gotta use the ladies room!" the shrewd voice of May cried out.

"Hold your horses! I'm almost done." Marie yelled back, as she did every morning.

Not much longer Marie exited the bathroom in a towel and made her way to her room. Although the sisters used to share a small room and bed, their mother had managed to get their uncle to add a few extra spaces to the trailer, which in turn gave each of the girls a moderately sized room to themselves.

When she arrived to her room, she unwrapped her towel and picked out her outfit for the day; a black Sex Pistols shirt and her usual olive drab khakis. After she was dressed, she took some more time in front of her vanity mirror to add some make-up. She generally didn't use much, opting only for some blue eyeliner on most casual occasions. But as she stared into her vanity mirror, she thought about why she dyed her hair in the first place. Of course it was to mold into her "punk" look, but was she still that person? As of recent, she had wanted to dye it back to its original dark brown, almost black tint.

After her inspection in the mirror, she still had time to kill before Lee even rolled out of bed to take them to school, so she went to the kitchen and stuck a bagel in the toaster. As she waited for her bagel to toast, she flicked on the small television in the kitchen to pass the time. As she watched, May entered the kitchen with an uneasy grin on her face.

"We sure showed her, huh?" May said to her sister as she pulled out a diet coke.

"Yeah I'm sure the toilet paper and potato _reallllly_ scared her, May" Marie said sarcastically.

"We sure did! That'll teach those turkeys not to mess with the Kankers!" her sister said, not catching the sarcasm.

Marie just sighed and applied cream cheese to her bagel. Time flew until Lee awoke and quickly dressed, being an evening shower kind of person. It wasn't long until all three Kanker sisters were lobbying in the kitchen small talking. Around 7:15 Lee decided to move them into the truck.

"Already girlies, let's get a move on!" Lee hustled.

And with that, the girls were off to another eventful day at Peach Creek High. In the cul-de-sac, a restless Edd stumbled out of his bed, not receiving very much sleep do to the events of the night before. He did manage to wake up at his usual time, hop in the shower, have a quick breakfast, and do the chores left for him before school as he normally would.

After he finished his morning chores, he took lead out to his car and waited for his friends, listening to _Every Man has a Molly_ by Say Anything. A rather suiting song. It was only two minutes into the song when his two best friends opened his passenger doors and hopped in.

"Good morning gentlemen, I assume you are both well rested for the day ahead?" Double Dee said, rather ironically.

"Yeah, sure, after the night of kicking the Covenants ass at my place all night?" Eddy replied, "We're ready for anything!"

Ed yawned, "Double Dee, when are they having bottomless gravy day again at school?"

"I'm not sure Ed, but I'll be sure to check the weeks' menu for you today." Double Dee smiled.

"Alright, alright, let's just throw on some real tunes, yeah?" Eddy told Double Dee as he plugged in his aux cord. He then selected _New Poetry_ by Innerpartysystem from his phone. "Now this is what I call jammin'!"

"Whatever you say Eddy," Double Dee groaned as he reversed out of his parking spot. "How's that diet plan going for you and Ed?"

"Oh! The dames love it! Even if they don't know it yet." Eddy said while flexing.

"And you Ed?" Double Dee asked.

"Carbs are bad for Ed!" he yelled as he poked his fore arm.

"Why don't you tell that to the whole bag of Doritos you wolfed down last night Lumpy?" Eddy laughed.

"Come now Eddy, surely it's good to have at least some carbohydrate intake?"

"Yeah, you could learn a thing or two about intaking some carbs Sockhead." Eddy said, poking Doubles' skinny arms.

"Eddy! Do not touch my shifting arm! You might make me grind gears." Double Dee shrieked, wanting to avoid the conversation about it skinniness.

"All I'm saying is you could use some meat, ya know the swim team's season starts this October right? That seems right up your alley! The pools are….clean and uh, well, chlorine ya see, and…" Eddy let out.

"I can assure you that those pools are not clean Eddy," Double replied, "But I have put some thought into an easy going, sport." he stated, not knowing how hard swimming can actually be.

"Yeah, yeah, just do it, it'd be good for ya." Eddy said in an odd sincerity, "Can we stop at the Quick-E Mart before school? I wanna try out one of those protein loaded monster things."

"Sure Eddy, just don't take too long." said Double Dee as he changed lanes and pulled into the parking lot, "Could you grab me a granola bar while you're in there as well?" he asked with a five dollar bill in hand.

"Yeah, yeah, just gimme the dough." Eddy said as he exited the car.

Only minutes later did Eddy come back to find Double Dee and Ed having a detailed discussion about black holes and the probability of one consuming Earth.

"I just don't find it likely that a hyper-dense black hole will spontaneously form near our humble planet, Ed."

"But Double Dee! The king of the Ulags said it would in the final chapter of _Shatter Skull Tribe of Pluto_!"

"Ed, what did I tell you about taking all those comics literally? It's bad for your bra-oh, hello Eddy. I trust you brought me change?" Double Dee said with an open palm.

Eddy placed a granola bar and three dollars and fifty-five cents in his hand.

"Thank you Eddy," Double Dee said, looking at his change, "It's crazy to believe the feats we accomplished only years ago just for a fraction of this change." he mused as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"Yeah I know," Eddy said, "We should have aimed higher!"

Double Dee just rolled his eyes and continued his drive to school. After they arrived at his parking spot, they wasted no time getting out and walking towards the lobby, as to avoid any confrontation. As usual, Ed and Eddy went to the gym and Double Dee went into the library.

In the library, there was a window adjacent to the front parking lot, giving any in the library a clear view of it. Double Dee noticed a familiar late eighties Toyota pull in, and watched as its occupiers exited. As soon as he saw the blue hair through the window, he seemed to break into a nervous sweat, still shaky about the previous night, which was odd considering it wasn't even that bad.

In any case, he averted his attention back to his book before he stained his shirt. This went on until the first bell rang telling the students to report to their first block classes. Edd promptly made his way to his English class, knowing he would face confrontation in the inevitable free time at the end of class. It began as usual, with Double Dee taking his place in the front of the class, but when Marie walked in she didn't remove he visible eye off of poor Edd.

"Morning cutie," she whispered as she walked by his desk, "did you enjoy my visit last night?" she teased.

The last part caught the attention of Kevin from the back of the room, prompting him to eaves drop and draw conclusions.

"W-well it was certainly…spontaneous to say the least. Although I trust you learned something new, so I suppose it wasn't without success." Edd stammered out, causing Kevin to chuckle at the implication.

Marie shot Kevin a quick glance of disapproval and he stopped his tom foolery and returned to his conversation with one of the football guys.

"Yeah, well I say we should study together more often." Marie said, invading his personal space, "I like seeing you use that big brain of yours."

At this point, Double Dee was on the verge of hyperventilating, and could hardly let out a quivering "Certainly" in reply. A mere few seconds later, the teacher arrived to take roll, and begin class per usual. Overall, it went without difficulty, as both parties paid close attention to the notes to prepare for their writing prompt later that year. Almost on cue, the administrator gave them the last fifteen minutes for them to talk amongst themselves or reflect on the days' notes. Marie took this opportunity to chat with Double Dee of course.

"So what else do you do for fun, you know, besides looking at comets and stuff?" Marie asked as she put away her folder.

"Well if I am home I am usually doing some form of studying, whether it is for school or personal gain. But I often find myself at whit's end with my friends." Double Dee replied, in a calmer manner than earlier.

"Yeah, I know you Eds really take sticking together seriously." Marie stated, "Even back when it appeared the rest of the neighborhood wanted your heads you boys stood by each other."

"Yeah, we were always like that I suppose." Double Dee thought as he analyzed Maries' words, "For most of our coming of age we didn't get along with the rest of the children of the cul-de-sac." Double Dee continued, "I suppose it was because of our persistence in trying to rob them. It wasn't until the events at the amusement park that they realized Eddy wasn't how he was because of choice; he felt he had shoes to fill."

"Yeah, I remember that," Marie said, remembering the events before eighth grade, "I also remember you being the first to stick up for him," she remembered with a smile, "I also remember the big guy nailing Eddy's brother with a door before we all left." She smirked.

"Yeah, I suppose I was the one to take a stand first, but someone had to, I will not stand for bullying, especially towards my best friend." Double Dee said, causing Marie to think about the previous night's tee-peeing and egging, "Speaking of, I trust you and your sisters solved that little conflict with Jessica without violence?"

This caused Marie to stutter, "Why, yeah of course we did! What'd you think we were gonna do, let it slide? That just ain't the Kanker way."

"Well I am proud of you and your sisters then," Double said, realizing that he was yet again engaged in a pleasant conversation with the blue haired Kanker sister.

"Yeah…so, I guess I'm sorry about giving you a hard time last night about coming in, I really wasn't expecting you to actually let me in." Marie said, feeling warmth in her face.

"Well, as long as it is, um, knowledge you seek, I am sworn to help you find it." Double Dee muttered out before realizing how dopey it came off.

"So, did you really mean it when you said I could come over again then?" asked Marie, losing the blush.

"Why, I suppose that would appropriate, just let me know ahead of time before you come over okay?" Double Dee said with hesitation.

"Sounds like a plan then! You guess it'd be okay for me to come over tonight at ohh say, 7:30? We can gaze at stars all night if you'd like." Marie said cheerily.

"I-I suppose that will be fine, but I'll need to check my schedu-"

"Oh I just knew you'd let me come over Double Dee!" Marie exclaimed in an over-exaggerated high pitched girly voice, before she buried her face in Edd's chest in a hug.

This scene caused Kevin to bust a gut and fall out of his chair before texting all of his friends about the "couple", only following his usual protocol with Nazz, which should be noted to love having knowledge of the new couples. Marie had finally released, Double Dee when the first block lunch bell rang, causing the students to make their way to the lunchroom or their second period class.

Double Dee had expected that Marie would want to eat lunch with him, but she didn't make an appearance in the lunchroom, so he was at peace to do some studying. After lunch, he migrated to his office assistant glass, only to be smitten with another painfully boring day of front door buzzer. Time flew slowly until he went to third block, when he expected more interaction with Marie, only for her to be absent. He would later learn that she had to stay in her auto-body shop for an extra block to help refurbish a spare axel. This seemed as a relief to hormonal Double Dee, but also left him a little disappointed. Although he wasn't without company, because Ed had been sure to show up.

The rest of the school day was very run of the mill, leaving no particular taste in Double Dee's mouth; only making him want to go home. So he later found himself waiting in his car for his best friends again.

"It's only been three damn days, and I'm already tired of this!" Eddy yelled as he threw his books on Double Dees floor boards.

"Oh Eddy, must we go over this again?" Double Dee moaned before winding up the starter.

"I just wanna be home schooled or something, the teacher is just so…agghh!" Eddy said in a fit of rage.

Over the years, Double Dee had learned it is better to just let Eddy settle down than try and talk him out of his fit. So he turned on some music by _The plan to Steal the Eiffel Tower_ and hoped it would help ease Eddy's nerves. A short drive later, and the boys went their separate ways, with Double Dee taking his usual parking spot on the left side of the garage.

Double Dee took his spare time to watch some older cartoons on Netflix before assorting the various odds and ends in his room for maximum efficiency. In the midst of his re-arrangement, he remembered that Marie was planned to come over later that evening and froze with realization. Was this a date? He found the answer not too clear. Was it actually possible for him to see Marie Kanker, the girl who spent years torturing him and his friends, in a romantic manner? He had never felt any feelings of romance toward a girl before, aside from the usual boy-hood crush. Over the last couple of days he had come to see Marie not as a monster, but someone to talk to, and hold his attention during another wise boring school day.

Regardless, he still tried to be as presentable as possible, as he did whenever he expected company. When he decided that everything was clean enough, he took time to relax on the couch for a bit before she arrived.

It wasn't long after that he heard the familiar sound of his door bell. He briskly went to greet the expected visitor. He wasn't prepared for what he saw at all.

When he opened the door, he saw a very familiar looking Marie, although she was wearing a pair of bell bottom blue jeans, and a form fitting black tee shirt. Although a simple outfit, Double Dee couldn't help from staring for a moment before inviting her in.

"If ya keep staring, I'm gonna have to charge you." Marie joked with a smile, not used to getting "checked out".

"Why y-yes, please come in Marie, make yourself at home." Double Dee stammered out as she brushed by him.

As she walked into his home, she made sure to look around and take in the cleanliness and professionalism the main living area boasted. She was so used to living in a messy trailer; she had forgotten what a clean home looked like.

"So what was it you wanted to research again?" Double Dee asked as he closed the front door.

"You." Marie replied as she placed her purse on his couch.

This implication took Double Dee back a little.

"Why, whatever do you mean Marie?" Double Dee asked with a gulp, fearing the answer.

"I wanna learn about you, Edward." Marie genuinely replied.

This took Double Dee even farther on the loop; he had never expected Marie to want to know the real Edd. The use of his proper name further increased this unease.

"Well," Double Dee said as he offered a seat, and then took one for him, "any specifics?"

Marie pondered, and decided to start off with an easy on; "Have you always lived in Peach Creek?"

"Yes and no, I was born and raised for the first few years of my life in the inner city a couple miles to the north. But when I was three my parents decided that inner city life wasn't the environment they wanted me to be raised in and moved to the suburbs. And like that, I've lived here for thirteen years." Double Dee answered, "Anything else?"

"Why do you always wear the hat?" Marie asked a common question to say the least.

"There's nothing bad under here if that's what you're thinking," Double Dee stated while removing his hat to reveal thick black hair of moderate length, "It's just something I've grown accustom too since I was a child, I've never been fond of spending copious time on my hair in the morning so I just throw my toboggan on and presto; no worry."

"Oh. Well that's boring; I guess I lose that bet with Lee then." Marie joked.

"So what about you then, Marie?" Double Dee began, "Where are you from?

"Welll, me and my sisters moved here from the inner city a few summers ago. Renting an apartment just got too expensive for mom at the time, so we planted our trailer out here where it's cheap." Marie answered shamefully.

Double Dee sensed this shame, "Marie, perk up your chin, whatever is there to be remorseful about?"

Marie lifter her head, "All you guys probably think me and my sisters are all trailer trash," she sniffed, "but I wouldn't blame you to, we've been so awful to you guys in the past."

Double Dee sensed awkwardness in the air, but decided it wasn't human to let someone get upset if you can help it.

"Come now Marie, surely you know that one can't control the circumstances of their birth," he placed a hand on her shoulder, "and you should know that we view all those past instances as nothing more than childish shenanigans."

The last words really perked up Marie's mood, and brought a smile to her face before she embraced Double Dee in a hug, this one far more genuine than the last.

"Thankyou Double Dee, believe it or not you're the only person outside of my family to say any words of encouragement since we moved here." Maries' words made Double Dee feel awful.

Who was he to judge the three sisters based on their outward actions alone, they had truly never even given them a chance to show their true colors.

"So, what do you do to fill your free time Marie?" Edd asked to lighten the mood.

His words seemed to do exactly what he wanted as Marie perked up, "Well, I really like visual arts, sketching and painting and stuff, I actually have a few in my purse if you'd like to see."

"Why of course, I'd love to see them." Double Dee said, getting more comfortable with the presence of a girl in his home.

Marie shuffled around her purse, which was admittedly bigger on the inside, until she pulled out a beaten up sketch pad.

"Here ya go Double Dee, feel free to tell me what you think!" she said cheerily as she handed him the note pad.

He was amazed by what he saw in the sketchbook; various pictures of natural scenery, cars, and oil paintings adorned the pages to the seams. All of the pictures seemed to contain heavy detail and to have taken large amounts of time. Double Dee had never known Marie to be an artist.

"Marie these are amazing!" Double Dee praised as he turned the page. The next picture happened to be a very detailed picture of what seemed to be a ninth grade him. Although he was admittedly flattered, it gave him an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

"Yeah, I know it probably seems creepy." Marie said as she grabbed her sketch book out of Edd's hands, "I hope you know I only did it cause' I think you're hella cute." She said whilst putting her notebook back in her purse.

"Well, as seemingly odd as it might be on my end," Double Dee said as he placed his hand on her shoulder, "I think it looked marvelous." He finished off with a smile.

This caused Marie's face to fill with blush and a small smile adorn her face. All the while, Double Dee began to succumb to his animalistic, hormonal self and despite his better judgment gave Marie a peck on the forehead. If her face wasn't red before, it certainly was now.

"Double Dee!" she yelled as she pulled away, "You sly dog you, luring me into your house with the promise of knowledge, only to be met with reality of your own perversion!" Marie teased.

"What?!" I assure you, this was not my intention, I just felt like it would be...uhm…fitting I suppose is the award, but I sw-" he was cut off by Maries' index finger.

"I'm just yanking your chain oven mitt." she whispered right into Edd's ear.

Not a second later did the two teens succumb even further, and with their faces already so close together, take advantage of the proximity and share their first-real-kiss, on both ends.

Marie's mind was filled with verses and proverbs to explain the sensation in her journal at a later date, Double Dee's head raced with a filling of euphoria and closure from the last couple of days. After around a five second kiss, they just sat on the couch together for a spell until Double Dee broke the silence.

"So…does this mean that, uh…we're a…well…you know…" he stammered.

Marie looked him directly in the eyes and managed to calm the screaming little girl who just got her first kiss from her dream guy in her head, and answered.

"I mean, if there's no other girls, yeah, I'd like that." she answered in a teasing manner.

"Other girls? Surely you are kidding. On the topic at hand, I am not opposed to the id-" Double Dee was yet again interrupted.

This time, Marie couldn't contain herself and squeed like a little girl, jumping up and down, all the while holding onto Edd's hand.

"You don't even know Double Dee, but it's getting late, so we'll have to go over the fine print of this deal tomorrow, okay?" Marie joked, alluding to the time running short.

"Yes, that sounds manageable" Double Dee replied happily.

In the midst of their staring, they had both come to the same problem in their head; "We can't tell the others, not yet at least." Marie managed to spit out first.

"I agree, it would only cause conflict. For the time being, we may have to settle with casual visits. It won't take too long for the idea of two becoming one to set in, and I'm sure you're sisters wouldn't mind if you told them right away." Edd said in a logical manner.

"Yeah that'll work cutie pie," Marie moved in closer to Double Dee's face, "Until then I guess you're my little secret…" Marie said as she stole another kiss.

After another round of spit swapping, Marie finally deemed it late enough to leave.

"Alright Double Dee, I'll see you tomorrow okay? And thank you! You don't know how much this actually means to me." Marie said on his porch.

"Certainly Marie, please be safe on your trek home, the worst dangers of the night are those unforeseen. Sleep well, and I'll talk to you tomorrow." Double Dee said before on last hug.

After they said their goodbyes, Marie walked home feeling like a million bucks. Her dream had finally come true, even if it was in a totally cliché and rushed manner; she had finally hooked onto her beloved Double Dee.

Double Dee felt much the same ecstasy when he prepared himself for bed, though it was very "in the heat of the moment" he couldn't help but feel in his gut that he had made the right decision in his actions, and would proudly stand by and defend them. He couldn't wait to learn all about Marie in the future, and couldn't get the creeping thought of her stunning image out of his head for the remainder of the night.

Authors notes: AND THE CHESSINESS KICKS IN.  
Sorry if you're not one for sudden romance and stuff like that, I just feel nine chapters is enough to set the mood, it's time to fire that main plot up! Anyways, I hope it wasn't too mushy, I've never written any love stories before.

Thanks for reading, and as usual feel free to leave a review to tell me what I'm doing wrong or what you'd like to see.

Also, kudos to those of you that got the slight Doctor Who reference ;)

Goodnight!


	10. Chapter 10

The next day began as a crawl for poor Edward as he grumbled at the sound of his alarm. He had found rest easily the night before in a state of bliss, but the reality had finally kicked in; he had a spontaneous relationship. Within the course of two hours, with a girl whose middle name he does not even know, became his first courting partner in his few years on this planet. Instead of getting up and performing his usual duties, he lay in bed thinking about all the possible repercussions of the night before, and it wasn't until twenty minutes of this worrisome thinking that he finally reassured himself that he was being paranoid over the whole thing. He was sure that if things took a turn for the worse, they could be civil enough to just split it off like nothing happened.

With that reassuring thought, he scrummaged some clean cloths out of his closet and took a quick morning shower, and followed with the normal morning rituals he had become accustom too. After he performed all his allotted tasks from his parents, he took extra time to check his mirror for blemishes, wanting to make a good almost-first impression with his "girlfriend". After making positive that he was presentable and that his hair was extra parted, he took the last thirty minutes before his departure to relax.

Things were a little different in the Kanker household, as Marie could not contain her excitement. From the time she got home, she was itching with glee. And she managed to hold their "secret" for a whole two hours before her big sister found her looking through old year books at two in the morning. Marie practically burst with joy and happily talked her sister's ear off until she finally fell asleep from exhaustion an hour later, only to be granted with dreams of her beloved. When she awoke to the rough voice of Lee, she was still radiant with excitement, although she was obviously drowsy from lack of sleep the night before.

Things went as usual in the Kanker household, with the only change being Marie putting extra effort into her make up, and straightening her hair a little better than usual. She wanted to make her first public appearance with Double Dee a memorable one and to impress him as she did the night before. After she finished up with her freshening up, she fell into a trance over Edd again, only to be rudely awoken by Lee again.

"C'mon _oven-mitt _we gotta haul it to get to school." she yelled into her little sisters' room.

"Alright! You don't have to yell wide load," Marie shot back; "I'm coming."

Marie made her way out to the pre-started truck and listened to music on the short ride to school.

Back in the cul-de-sac, Double Dee was waiting in the car for his best friends as usual. He was once again listening to music when he heard the familiar creak of the doors opening. The ride to school was unusually quiet for the trio, all the while Edd was glowing with unease.

The tensions finally ceased when they arrived at the school, with Eddy breaking the silence;

"Don't bother waiting on me after school today Sockhead, my mom's coming to talk to the principal to get me out of that hell of a geometry class."

"Well, I am sorry that you are having such troubles with geometry Eddy," Double Dee said, "but I am proud that you are taking initiative on setting yourself on a healthier path."

"Yeah, I'm gonna try to switch into a CP class or whatever, get all the lazy work." Eddy said with confidence.

Double Dee let out a sigh as they all exited and made way to the school. Double was half way to the front doors when he remembered that he had decided to wait on Marie, so the thought of an excuse.

"Uhh, gentlemen," he stuttered, "I think I'm going to perform my morning study session in the confines of my car."

Ed and Eddy just stared at him blankly.

"Whatever you say Sockhead, no skin off my turkey." Eddy said as he continued to the front door. "C'mon monobrow."

"Goodbye Double Dee!" yelled Ed as he waved farewell.

Double Dee waved back before making his way back to his car. There was truth to his words, he did study some notes while he waited, but the sound of a nearly rusted through muffler took his attention away from his studying.

It was, of course, the Kanker sisters. The nervousness he had managed to conceal all morning practically irrupted as he fought to not break out in a sweat of fear. Then it hit him; what's the use in waiting on her if she hadn't told her sisters yet? Before they got out, he decided he wasn't ready for that yet, and made himself as small as possible in his driver's seat as to avoid detection. All hope of this was avoided when he saw the eyes of Lee practically staring daggers at him with a smile.

The trio of Kankers made their way to the drivers' side of Edd's car, when Lee cracked the silence.

"I think he's getting' steamy without ya in there Marie!" she laughed.

"Can it Lee!" Marie's voice said with a twinge of laughter.

She then made her way over to the door handle and opened it with a pull.

"Room for two?" she giggled.

Edd's tension eased a little after taking in Marie's calmness, and he sat back up in his chair, stretching for his books.

"Well," he stammered as he looked behind her at her sisters, "I was brushing up on the aspects of ancient Mandarin life style, so if you reall-"

"We have five minutes before first bell sweetie," she shushed him, "maybe you could settle with walking me to first block?"

Double Dee smiled in relief once again.

"I suppose that will have to do then." he smiled.

He had exited his vehicle, and taken his place amongst the Kankers. The group of four paced themselves to the lobby, right in time for the first bell to ring moments later. Double Dee had noticed the random laughter of Marie's sisters every few seconds on the way in, and wondered about what they were thinking. When they had reached Maries locker, she decided to tell him.

"I told my sisters." she let out, "They promised not to tell your friends until we're ready, or they find out on their own."

"Oh," Double Dee replied, "well that's one less confrontation at least. I'm glad they don't seem to mind."

Marie smiled, "Yeah, me too."

Silence once again filled the hallway before they made their way to their first block class together. Nothing was out of the norm until Double Dee felt the touch of cold fingers wrap their way around his left hand. This sent a flutter into his stomach, as he had never willingly received any physical contact from a female. He smiled from the corner of his mouth.

Although when they arrived in their first block in unison, she made sure to break off so the eyes of Kevin wouldn't see, knowing he would tell Eddy, and possibly half of the student body. No one seemed to bother that they had arrived together, though.

The class went mostly as normal, but at the half-way mark, Double Dee had felt a presence twirling a strand of his hair around the intruders finger. He was about to turn around and ask them to stop when he remembered that it was most certainly Maries finger, and as long as she didn't try and take off his hat in public he wouldn't really have a problem with her messing with a few strands.

When the teacher was done doing his thing, he left off with the usual fifteen minutes of free time. This, of course, gave the two time to talk.

"I still can't believe that's all it took." Marie joked.

"Why, whatever do you mean?" Double Dee asked.

"If I knew all it would take was a form fitting shirt, this would've happened years ago!" Marie sarcastically cried out.

"Well, I, you see-" Double Dee muttered in response.

"Oh c'mon Double Dee, you're gonna have to get used to my sense of humor." Marie said with a pat on his forehead. "So when do you think you'll tell your friends?"

"I'm hoping by the end of the week, but no later than the weekend. I just don't want them, well Eddy, to stress over nothing on top of all that which comes with a new year of school." Double answered.

"That's really sweet that you care for your friends like that Double Dee." Marie smiled, "So just a couple of days before we can hold hands and be like the couples from all the romance books, huh Prince Charming?"

"Why, yes, I suppose you could say that." Double Dee replies with a scratch to his neck.

"Well, at least we have reason to sit together at lunch after all this." she stated before playing with his bangs.

"That is a plus as well, up until today all I've occupied myself with was studying." he responded.

"Oh, there will be plenty of studying. Have you taken anatomy yet?" Marie let out one last joke before the bell rang. "I have to put up my book before lunch so I'll just meet you there, okay?"

"That will do." Double Dee said with a smile.

With that, the two separated until lunch. This gave Double Dee a few precious moments to reflect on what was happening. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, sure he would have to adjust to her sense of humor, but that is so far the only qualm. This is, of course, unless his friends see issue in the matter, which would not be out of the question considering their hectic past.

Double Dee made it to the lunch room at his usual time and set up at the table he had been occupying for the last three days to await for Maries arrival. He sat a mere three minutes before Marie had arrived.

After getting comfortable and saying their hellos, Marie decided on a subject to talk about for the next hour of lunch.

"So what do you like Double Dee?" she asked.

Double Dee had to think about this momentarily, as it was a very vague question.

"As in what?" he asked, hoping to limit the spectrum of answers.

"Music, shows, hobbies," she answered before taking a bite of her sandwich, "just anything really, I wanna learn about you for future reference." she made sure to sound extra smart with the last few words.

"Well, believe it or not, I listen to wide spectrum of music," he answered, "but if I had to choose a favorite band, it would have to be….probably Say Anything, or Lazerhawk."

"I wouldn't have expected that from you, so I guess you're right." Marie replied, "Don't they sing about a lot of drug and sex issues?"

"In a sense, yes. Most songs are about the lead singers' past troubles with drug abuse, and failure at finding love. But I find that they really lyricize the human experience as a whole. As in, the search for consistent happiness and the like." Double Dee reasoned. "What is your favorite band?"

"I'd have to go with Billy Talent." she answered.

"Ahhh. I can't say I've ever heard of him." Double Dee replied.

"Well, actually, it's a group," she corrected, "and I'm not surprised you haven't heard of them, they're mostly popular in Germany and Canada."

The last bit came off extra hipster-esque. The two sat in silence momentarily to eat, until Double Dee posed a question;

"So why don't you have your license yet?" he asked.

"I just haven't really got around to getting it. I've got my permit still, though." she answered as she pulled out a picture of herself at the age of 15.

Double Dee smiled while looking at her in the picture. It seemed as though she was forcing a smile for the camera.

"I've got a real question for you," Marie said before putting her ID back in her wallet, "why doesn't your civic sound like someone ripping ass going down the road?" she laughed.

Double Dee had to think about it for a second, never putting much thought into what his car sounds like.

"I suppose proper maintenance is the answer to that one." he answered sharing her laughter before taking a drink from his water bottle.

The couple shared in this playful banter until Marie put her lunch tray in the dish washing line. When she came back she asked Double Dee a question on a more serious note.

"Double Dee, did you always think we were monsters?" she asked in a somber tone.

Edd decided to answer her truthfully, "When you girls first arrived and served us at your house, I thought it was very out of the norm in our little cul-de-sac. But not weird, no. It wasn't until the "wedding" that we really started to fear you girls." he answered, "But after a few summers of it, and getting a bit more maturity on our ends, we realized that in out childhood, we probably over-exaggerated the extent of our abuse. We've long since labeled it as simple childhood tomfoolery. No harm done, although I still find you intimidating, truth be told."

His words lessened the burden on Marie's heart a little; at least they didn't hate them anymore. Although she was saddened that he still found her intimidating, she decided that she will show him her sweeter side, and drop the rough attitude her mother instilled in she and her sisters since they were young. Hopefully she could act as she did when she wrote in her journal about him, and he would come to cherish, and not fear her.

Before Marie could reply, the bell rang to signal the end of lunch.

"We can finish this at your house tonight, okay?" Marie stated, not giving him a choice in the manner, "Tell that I have to help out in auto-body again today and to send the notes I miss to my sisters in his fourth block."

And with that, she gave him a peck on the cheek, giving him the same euphoria as the night before. With that, he made his way to his second block, and helped in the office.

Marie was on the same course, albeit to the other end of the school, to her shop class, when she felt something squashy nail her in the back of her head. She immediately turned around to investigate, and found the assailant to be a very pissed Jessica, and the projectile to be a half-rotten potato. Confrontation ensued not long after.

"That's what you get for what you did you my car, maybe you won't be so brainless the next time this hap-"

She couldn't even finish her belittling statement before Marie had retaliated, and she did so with a very heavy English book smacked across her face, followed by a punch to the chin. The confrontation only got worse when one of Jessica's friends tried to help, and ended up getting an elbow in the nose. Whether an accident or not, it led to the friend running to get assistance from an administrator.

"You think you can just attack me without consequence?!" Marie yelled at a battered Jessica, before hitting her once more with the brunt of her fist, "Well today you decided to bite off more than you can chew huh?" Marie said as she reared back her arm for another hit, only for it to be grasped by the head coach of the football team. The pair were then escorted to the office.

Double Dee was filing various papers for the office, when he heard the door open, and saw a very messy Marie.

"Get now!" coach Suttles demanded, before telling Marie to wait at his door.

Double Dee shared a short "What happened?" glance with Marie before going into the principals courters and alerting him that someone needed his assistance. He watched Marie's back as she walked into the private courters before he went back to filing, his head filled with worry.

Marie on the other hand, was in the middle of getting the typical "You're a kid, you don't know the impact this will have blablabla" speech she always gets from older adults, so she zoned out until he asked for an explanation. After explaining all the things that led up to the assault, he was at a little more ease. He told her how that wasn't the first time she had been accused of bullying younger teens since she's been there, and had she came to him instead of fighting back she could have been in a lot more trouble than she was now. This eventually led to him understanding it wasn't a random fight, and just warranting Marie a detention and a day of in school suspension.

When Marie didn't come out before the third block bell, Double Dee was officially worried. With that, he took it upon himself to tell her auto-body teacher that she was needed in the office. On his way down the north wing, he saw small drops of blood being mopped up by the local school janitor. This only made him more uneasy.

After informing Marie's teacher of her absence, he rushed to his third block class as to not be late himself. When he arrived, he saw Ed had reserved his spot beside him, and smiled when he entered the room.

"Double Dee!" Ed yelled, "Do you know how late it is mister?"

"Hello to you too, Ed. I trust you're having a good day of school?"

Ed had a look of confusion for a second before smiling again, "Eddy poured honey mustard on Johnny's head today at lunch today Double Dee."

"Well, that does sound quite humorous, if not a little mean." Double Dee replied with a grin.

"Johnny looked like one of the Martians from _The Indomitable Plan to Steal the Bermuda Triangle_!" Ed continued.

The duos friendly banter was ceased when the bell rang again, and they teacher came in and began lecturing them on the importance of ancient languages. When the notes had ended, and they were assigned bookwork, Double Dee told the teacher that Marie was still in the office and more than likely got sent home. He was thanked for letting him know.

When Double Dee was making his way back to his desk, Ed's waving caught his attention.

"Double Dee! Will you be part-e-ner?" Ed said with an eyelash flutter.

"Why of course I will Ed, what number have you gotten to?" Double Dee answered before picking up Ed's paper only to find sketches of Godzilla eating their principal's car.

Double Dee just gave him a friendly smile and got to work on their assignment.

After that class had ended, Double Dee found himself sitting in the relaxed presence of his computer room. After finishing the short typing assignment, Rolf asked for his help.

"Much assistance would be appreciated, yes." he said in his high pitched Norwegian accent.

Double Dee made his way to his computer to help him format his assignment, when Rolf made an unusual comment.

"Your scent is that of raspberries and young love, Sock-on-head-Ed boy. What troubles have you gotten into?" Rolf remarked, smelling Marie's perfume, or so Double Dee thought.

"Why, whatever could you mean Rolf?" Double Dee asked, genuinely confused.

"Ho-ho, Rolf knows what you have been studying in your free time. You cannot trick this son of a shepard!" Rolf yelled with his trademark "ho-ho" laugh.

Double Dee decided to share in his laugh to avoid further confrontation, and finished off with the formatting. He then made his way back to his computer and continued browsing the web until the bell rang to signal the end of another school day.

On his way toward the front doors, he passed Ed, who stopped him in the hallway.

"Hey Double Dee, Eddy told me to tell you that, uh…" Ed thought, "that he said to 'tell that Sockhead that you're staying till I get out' or somethin'."

"So, you're waiting on Eddy?"

"If you say so Double Dee." Ed replied in his deep, dopey voice.

"Okay then Ed, I'll see you later." Double Dee smiled.

Ed just waved as he walked away.

Since he was going to be without company on the ride home, he decided to see if Marie would like a ride home, and to discuss why she was in the office. Not long after he made it to his car, all three Kankers walked out in unison. They approached their car, and Marie walked towards Edd.

"Hey Double Dee." Marie smiled, "Where are your friends?"

"They aren't riding with me today." he replied. "But I was wondering if you'd like for me to give you a lift home."

This was punctuated with the other two Kankers letting out a simultaneous "OooooOOoooh", leading to Marie gathering a small blush.

"Yes Double Dee, I think I'd like a break from these two idiots." she joked with a smile shot at her sisters. "We can go ahead and go if ya want."

And with that, they packed into Edd's car.

"So I guess you wanna know why I was in the office, huh?" Marie asked.

"I'm more worried as to why you look like you gut gored by a bull." Double Dee replied while taking her bruised hand in his.

"Oh yeah, well that too." she smiled. "I might have got into a fight with that girl who was teasing May the other day. Or, I guess I just beat her pretty bad." she said while observing her bloodied knuckles.

"Marie, while I am a pacifist, and believe violence to never be a permanent answer," he stated while brushing her hair out of her face, "I think she had it coming."

Marie smiled as he started the car and took it out of neutral.

"Hey Double Dee, do you think we could go eat somewhere? That lunch we had didn't do it for me." she asked.

"Of course Marie, my treat." he smiled.

"You don't have to do that oven mitt, I've got money." Marie reassured.

"What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't buy you your food?" he remarked.

"Whatever you say, Edward." she replied before smiling at the road ahead.

The two eventually arrived at the local "Cluckin' Bell" and basked in each other company before heading to her trailer.

"So I guess I'm not coming over tonight then." she said on her doorstep, referring to the pre-mature darkness of late summer.

"You can always come over tomorrow," Double Dee reassured before locking his hands with hers, "although my parents would be home, so we could go to the park or something if you'd like."

"That sounds like a plan." she smiled before she leaned in and kissed him. "Goodnight Double Dee."

"Goodnight Marie." he said with a grin.

And with that, he drove the short distance to his home, right as the sun had descended the sky. When he went in, he realized he had absolutely nothing to occupy himself with for the rest of the night. So instead of studying, or watching TV, he decided to brush up on his knowledge about American-made cars to have something to talk about with Marie. After a few hours of that, he decided it was time to call it a night, and entered the realm of sleep, eager to see what adventure the next day will bring.

Authors notes:

Sorry that this chapter was all over the place x.x

I wrote it over the course of a really out of whack sleep schedule, I started it when I woke up yesterday at one am, and decided to finish it this morning, after I woke up xD

So, I guess it's all just sleepiness-induced writing, the exact opposite of my drawings and stuff x3

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'm eager to what you think about it, and about what should happen next.

Have a good day guys and gals ^_^


	11. Chapter 11

The magnificent sun had risen over Peach Creek at 7:05 am on the dot, and an eager Double Dee was already busy making himself for the day. He had finished the chores his parents had given him already, and was in a rush to wash his toboggan after dropping it in a hot pot of coffee. He had already put it in the washing machine, but worried that he would have to get it cleaned by a professional to get the vicious stains out. He feared the worst had happened, and that he would have to go to school hatless; a prospect that has haunted him since he began going to school.

It had already been thirty minutes since he put it in the washing machine when he heard pounding at the door. With a quick look at the clock, he realized that he was already running later than usual, and he would have to brave the day hat-less. He decided to let the washing machine run its usual cycle while he was at school, and hoped it would rid the ski-hat of the stains. Double Dee faced the door and took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for the worse. With a quick turn of the knob, he opened the door.

"Geez, where is he at anyway-"

"HE IS ALIVE!" Ed said, cutting off Eddy.

"Geez Sockhead, were you getting busy with yourself or wha-" Eddy was yet again cut off, only this time by his own laughter, causing Double Dee embarrassment.

"Yes, laugh if you must. I suppose it's best to do it here as opposed to in school." Double Dee said as he made his way to his car. "Shall we be going then, gentlemen?

The boys all hopped in Double Dee's car. Double Dee took less time than usual to let his car warm up, and almost immediately threw it into reverse.

"Did you get a haircut?" Ed asked in his usual oblivious tone.

This caused Eddy to burst in a second fit of laughter. This went on until about half way to the school.

"So really, why don't you have it today Sock-" Eddy caught himself, "Well I guess I can't call you that today."

"If you must know, I accidently dropped it in a pot of fresh coffee this morning in my rush. There wasn't enough time to properly clean it, so, as much as I hate to, have to show everyone my true hair."

Eddy just stared at him.

"I really don't see why you're so embarrassed by your hair Double Dee; it's really not that bad." Eddy said honestly.

"As much as I appreciate your kind words, I'm afraid I don't feel the same way, Eddy. I've always had a phobia of judgment over my hair." Double Dee said.

Eddy just groaned, as Double Dee's fear was truly all in his head. Sure, there used to be rumors that he had a big brain, or scars or something of that nature under his hat in middle school, but in truth, there was just thick, black hair that barely went past his nape. But no amount of reassurance could make him okay with his luscious lochs.

Not long after the friendly gesture, they had arrived at the usual parking spot, and began migrating towards the front doors. As much as Double Dee wanted to wait for Marie in his car as he did the day before, he couldn't think of a good enough excuse to not accompany his friends. With that, he decided that she would have to wait till first period, or find him in the library, whichever comes first.

Not long after the Eds had entered the building, the three sisters pulled in beside Edd's civic.

"I can't believe my sweet little Marie finally landed a man of her own." Lee said in a mockingly sweet voice.

"Oh shut up Lee, you're just jealous." Marie snapped back.

"Yeah, whatever you say Marie. Now if only that little loud mouth could see the Kanker charm Double Dee does." Lee chuckled.

"Yeah, maybe. All Bucky'd have to do is smother herself in gravy to get the big guy's attention." Marie teased at May.

"Don't you talk about my big Ed like that you panty stealer!" yelled May.

"Alright, alright, enough already!" Lee said in a drawn out tone, "Let's just get to breakfast before it ain't free anymore."

With that, the sisters began their trek to the doors as well, and went straight for the lunch room.

After their usual morning shenanigans, the teens eventually wandered into their first block classes, and began as usual. Except, Double Dee had been waiting for his new found girlfriend at her locker to walk her to her class, causing him to almost be late first the first time in his life. They entered the class in unison once more, but managed to keep their hands to themselves to avoid suspicion, of course because they wanted to let everyone know on their own terms.

The rest of the class went by mostly normal, Marie of course fiddling with Edd's hair while the teacher rambled. Overall, nothing too out of whack.

"So Double Dee, I was thinking…" Marie said with a twirl of her bangs.

"What is it Marie?" Double Dee said as he turned around.

"I was thinking that, since its Friday and all, you could try and come hangout at my place sometime?" she asked innocently.

Double Dee replied with a smile.

"I would love to accompany you and your family for dinner or a movie sometime Marie. What day were you thinking?" Double Dee replied.

"Well, any day is as good as the other, so it's whenever you're free I guess."

Double Dee thought, "If there is no issue, I suppose tonight would be the best option. I imagine Eddy has planned a trip to the inner city Saturday, and Sundays are generally my family nights. Would that work?" Double Dee asked.

"That's be perfect." she smiled.

After their short conversation, the bell rang and they traversed to lunch. The couple sat together without fear of persecution, as Kevin was generally in the shop instead of lunch, and usually ate in Eddy and Ed's lunch block to have good company. The majority of their lunch block was filled with either seniors they didn't know, or freshmen they didn't care about, so the tight nit group from the cul-de-sac tried to stick together in clusters. A familiar face from the neighborhood, however, did share this lunch, and casually looked over seeing the newfound couple eat in the happiness of each other's company. This person was of course the former head cheerleader, Nazz.

She had grown up an only child, and was used to the attention of her male peers growing up, always being on top, but never belittling those below her. It wasn't until the now bruised Jessica moved from Lemon Brooke freshman year that Nazz began to lose her grip on her position in the social food chain, not having the viciousness that Jessica did to deal with the competition, in a meta-physical sense. She was still known and liked by most, but after losing her position at the top of the pyramid, and after a couple of incidents with Jessica and her followers, she decided enough was enough and left her squad all together, focusing more on her education than social life.

And even though she saw right through their shroud of secrecy, she didn't tell anyone. She knew how it felt to be overlooked by someone she had liked since day one, so in a sense, she leveled with the blue haired Kanker. This kept the peace for both parties.

After lunch, they went their separate ways until third class, where all went as usual. The classroom was alive with the talk of what everyone would be doing over their first weekend back at school. The very same was happening with Edd and Marie.

"So what time do you want me to be at your trailer Marie?" Double Dee asked as he finished off his review on the ancient governments of the Mandarin.

"I was thinking around five or six, if that's okay. Mom shouldn't be home till tomorrow morning, and Lee is staying at our uncles house this weekend in the country, so maybe we could get May to leave and it could just you and me for a while." Marie smirked.

Double Dee started sweating a bit at the thought of "alone time", and what all it entailed.

"I'll be sure to be there on time Marie; do I need to bring anything?" Double Dee asked.

"Nothing in particular. You can bring a movie or something, we don't really have much to watch at home." she replied.

"Alright, I shall find the perfect movie then." Double Dee chuckled, planning on just borrowing one of Ed's B-monster movies.

After a little more small talk the couple were signaled to their next class, only to see each other again late into the evening.

The last period class went by rather quickly, with the usual qualms on Double Dees side. He once again assisted Rolf in some basic computer work, and finished his own just as fast.

Marie, on the other hand, was embracing herself in the world of art this block. Since she doubled up on her visual art classes her freshman year, she was the youngest in the advanced art III class, and got most of the class to her own devices, generally sketching or painting portraits of her favorite obscure bands. Today, however, she challenged herself to a unique test of skills; she was to sketch, outline, and paint Double Dee in a photo-realistic manner and give it to him as a gift. This could easily be done by her given the proper amount of time, but the challenge was to finish it before his early November birthday. Since she didn't have the proper materials at her home, she would have to complete it in class, in between actual art studies. Even with the limitations, she was sure she could finish it in time for her beloved's birthday.

It wasn't long till the final bell of the day rang throughout the school, signaling the students to get out and go home. Double Dee was the first to his car as usual, and awaited the arrival of his friends. Although his friends appeared to have been bested by the Kankers once again, as he saw the trio walking out before his buddies, but they soon followed. Double Dee gave a slight smile from the drivers' seat in Marie's direction right as Eddy slammed open the door.

"I just don't get why I can't change classes! Is it a crime that I want out of that hell hole?!" he seemingly pleaded to the air, "Every damn day I tell ya! That teachers' got it out for me Sockhead!"

"Now, now Eddy," Double Dee said as he pushed his friend back into his seat, "I'm sure a weekend away from the monotony of the classroom will calm your nerves."

Eddy let out a grunt, "Whatever, so I was thinking we hit the town this weekend, cruise for some ladies, what'd ya say Sockhead?"

"I would ask for no more, Eddy." Double Dee smiled as he turned on his car and excited the parking lot.

He eventually dropped Eddy off at the laundry mat he worked at on Fridays, and took Ed home. He made sure to ask for the least gory movie in Ed's collection, and ended up with _The Five-Winged Mudmen of Zion Canyon_, a "cult classic" as Ed put it. With that, Double Dee pulled into his driveway and picked out some clean clothes for his date with Marie later that evening. He eventually decided on a basic collared polo, red in color. He guessed that her trailer would be a little stuffy, so he exchanged his jeans with shorts that had a slight purple-grey checkered design, and changed into more appropriate shoes, accompanied by his shin high purple socks. He looked as he usually would in the summer, he thought.

Almost immediately after changing, he remembered that he probably needed to shave and shower, so he headed for the bathroom with a fresh towel. When he got to the mirror, he decided that his slight scruff didn't merit the uncomfortable after effects of razor burn, but did take a warm shower to wash away the day's filth, and give himself a naturally pleasant aroma. After all was done, he still had nearly an hour until five, so he sat in his dad's arm chair and read into his Science Weekly magazine for a while.

Marie did much the same, deciding on a quick shower to get rid of the oils that had accumulated on her skin and hair. Instead of layering her face with make up as would normally be expected, she ended up just going with her normal eye shadow.

As she stared in the mirror looking over herself, she noticed her freckles. She had inherited them from her mother, the same as her sisters. Since she could remember, she hated the way the small patches of brown sat over her pale skin, and how they made her face look dirty in the summer when she would get sun burnt. But it was just another part of her body that she couldn't control, and she left her cheeks un-covered from makeup.

She was quite nervous about Double Dee coming in her trailer. She feared that he would see it as trashy, and associate her with common filth, seeing as his parents have always had well-paying jobs and a nice home. She could only hope that he would look past her admittedly impoverished surroundings.

The clock was nearing five, and Double Dee was debating on walking to Marie's home, or driving out and around the cul-de-sac to the trailer park. After assuming that he'd be there after dark for a bit, he decided on driving. This decision was mostly influenced by his fear of walking through the construction site at night since one of the workers died a few years ago. The company having to deal with lawsuits was the plausible cause why it never seemed to get any farther in production.

After a final appearance check, Double Dee got in his car and made his way to the trailer park, hoping not to run into any of his friends on the way out. After checking his passenger mirror, he looked up to see Rolf waving him out. This didn't strike weird to him, since Rolf is generally a nice guy, so Edd just returned the gesture and made his way out of the cul-de-sac.

Marie was anxiously waiting on his arrival. She chose to wear a loose fitting band tee, and some work out sweats for comfort. While she was sitting on the couch, a humorous thought popped into her head; what if Double Dee came in heavily formal wear only to see her in such relaxed "at home" clothing? The thought made her giggle at herself before she heard the hum of an engine turning off, and a door shutting. These were soon followed by a gentle knock on the door of the caravan. She slowly opened the door to see a very appropriately dressed Edd, very unlike her earlier premonition.

"Hello Marie." Double Dee said with a nervous smile, having never been in a girl's home, willingly in this case.

"Hey Double Dee." Marie smiled while she looked at him; this was soon followed by her reaching up and around his shoulders in a tight hug. "I'm glad you could make it." she followed, still with her arms around him.

They stared at each other for a few more seconds before Marie let off, and walked back into the trailer. Double Dee made haste to follow her.

"So, did ya bring a movie?" Marie said in an oddly quirky voice.

"I did, actually. Although, I warn you, it is one of Ed's monster movies, so I'm not sure of the quality in the writ-"

"Oh just put it in already," Marie laughed, "I'll make some pop-corn!"

With that, Double Dee went to the entertainment center in front of the living room sofa. The tv looked as if it was from the mid-70s, with wood paneling all around. The DVD player seemed well enough, though, so he popped in the movie. Before he made his way to the sofa, he took some time to look around the living area. To him, the living room looked very mid-western disco age. Trinkets adorned the walls, and there was almost no empty space. The main light seemed to come from two wall scones above the couch, and a lamp beside the television. Overall, the room was quite cozy, and gave off a warm vibe; a stark contrast from the surrounding area outside.

Not soon after, Marie returned with the popcorn in a large orange bowl.

"I hope you like butter!" she joked.

Double Dee looked at her with a smile, as if signaling her to take the spot beside him. Marie soon took the middle spot of the couch, and curled her legs up to better lean in on Edd. Edd was still quite nervous, although the gentle expansion of her ribcage and slight wisk of air on his chest from her breathing seemed to calm him. The couple remained like this for the next hour and a half as the movie went on in the background. When it had ended, Marie went upstairs and changed into some jeans and a hoodie, and returned to Double Dee.

"Hey Double Dee, I was thinking, if it's okay with you," she feigned being nervous, "if maybe we could go out somewhere? Since it's still really early and all that, you know?"

A smirk dawned on Double Dee's face, "I suppose we could call it a 'plan'."

"Alright! So, where do we wanna go then?" Marie asked as she put on her shoes.

"Well, the cold nights of winter have yet to arrive, I suppose we could go somewhere other than town, if you wanted to of course." he replied.

Marie thought for a bit, "How about that junkyard you Eds used to hang out at all the time? With the purple can and everything?"

The thought of the smelly pile of garbage they used to call their 'central command' brought very fond memories to Double Dee.

"Well I suppose if you don't mind having to take another shower afterwards, we could go see what's become of the old place." Double Dee answered.

Marie returned a smile, and after that they departed the trailer. The sun was still in the sky for a few more hours, so they decided to walk, as it wasn't that far away from the trailer park. They went through the old drainpipe that Edd and his friends used to use as an entry point, and soon found themselves in the familiar confines of the junkyard.

"Hey, there it is!" Marie pointed at the old GMC van they had used as a clubhouse in their younger years.

Double Dee's head reared in the direction of her finger, and observed their old club house. It looked as if they had never left it, still in the same raggedy condition as they left it. This brought a smile to his face.

"I remember when we stumbled on this heap by accident oh so many years ago," Double Dee said as he placed a hand on its purple body, "we were but kids, and this was our grand escape. A place to really think, and talk."

Marie took note of his hearted speech, and hugged him from behind, attempting to place her head on his shoulder. After failing because of the height difference, she opted to just dig into his back. She soon found out that Edd was ticklish.

"S-stop!" Double Dee pleaded as he laughed.

"Not until you give me a kiss!" Marie demanded, tickling the now grounded Double Dee.

"O-okay! Whatever you wish!" Double Dee said as he grabbed her wrists and pulled her down for a quick kiss.

Marie was used to being the dominant person in any human interaction, but with Double Dee taking charge almost instinctually, it's almost turned her on, as Eddy would have described it. Despite her flourished cheeks, she decided not for things to get too heated so soon, and took herself off of his lap on the ground. After dusting their legs off quickly, the walked around to the back of the van.

"Let's just take a peek in…" Double Dee said as he opened the bay doors in the bag, revealing the genuine shag carpeting, and a popped water bed. "Well, I suppose the old girl has seen better days.

Marie took a closer look around the old van, "Y'know, it seems like most of the damage is cosmetic, these old Vanduras had very strong engines. I could almost bet that with a little TLC, and replacing a lot of the rusted parts on the underside, this old bitch could glide over pavement again." she said.

"That'd almost be like a dream come true, Marie." Double Dee said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "I believe Eddy said something about his father buying it in the future for refurbishment, but I think that's just hot air."

"Well whoever does it, that van could look good again pretty easily. I'd love to see her kickin' in the future." Marie said.

The two shared a moment of staring at the back of the van before letting their hormones taking over once again, with Double Dee pulling her onto the still soft shag carpet in the back, before a very heated first make out session. This went on for around ten minutes, before the chill of the early fall winter crept up their backs, reminding them of precious time.

"I guess we better start heading back then huh?" Marie asked in between deep breathes.

"I suppose it is getting kind of late. And it seems the chill of fall has come earlier than usual this year." Double Dee said as he got up off of Marie.

The couple walked in unison back to Marie's trailer. They had spent nearly two hours out and about, so it was nearing 9:30 at night by the time they got back to her trailer. They were at her door step as they said their goodbyes.

"I had a really nice time with you this evening Marie." Double Dee said, his hands around hers.

"I did too Double Dee," Marie said with a smile, "I'm really happy that we're doing this…whatever this is."

"I am as well. It seems everything is going better than I expected thus far. I don't know why it took me so long to see your beauty, Marie." he said shamefully.

This took Marie back a little, having never been called beautiful before.

"Thanks Double Dee, it really means a lot." Marie said with a smile, "If it means anything, I think you're beautiful too." she said with a chuckle.

They shared a laugh before returning to conversation.

"So, you think we'll be doing more stuff like this once we go public?" Marie asked Double Dee.

He had put some thought into it himself, and finally decided that he would try and tell his friends the next day when they go into the city. He figured that Ed wouldn't feel strongly one way or another, but he was worried about Eddy's approval. Since they became highschoolers, the two groups haven't had many confrontations, but Eddy has a bad problem with grudges.

"Certainly! There's nothing I want more than to show my affections in as many ways possible, as many times I can." Double Dee said, not catching his own implication.

Maria let out a sly smirk, "Anyway possible, huh? The night doesn't have to end so soon Double Dee." she teased, causing Edd to blush.

"W-w-well, I didn't mean l-like that Marie, y-yo-" she shushed him before leaning into his ear.

"Shhh. I was pulling your leg ovenmitt. Goodnight." Marie punctuated with a kiss on the cheek.

"I'll see you soon, then, Marie." he waved before heading to his car.

After she shut the door, he started his civic and drove the short distance to his home in the cul-de-sac. He went into his home and made a bowl of cereal before watching Netflix until he fell asleep, with fond memories of hours earlier racing through his mind.

Marie had a similar feeling of euphoria rushing through her mind. She was still on top of the world over finally landing Edd as her significant other, and couldn't wait till they could show their blossoming love at school and in front of their peers. These warm thoughts carried her into a blissful sleep.

Authors notes time!

I don't really have much to say about this one. I know it's not that long, but I really haven't felt inspired since school came back in session Monday. I didn't want to go on hiatus again so soon after a long absence. I had originally planned to make this chapter a little longer, and write it over the course of the week, but my birthday (I turned 18 today!) got in the way of a full course of writing, so hopefully this'll do. Thanks for reading, and hopefully I'll be able to write a little more this weekend. Until then, my compadres!

Any suggestions? Feel free to write a review!


	12. Chapter 12

The next day came to Eddward with a crawl. His blissful thoughts of the few short hours he had spent with Marie the evening before had went to bed with him, and he could not stop thinking about them. He even shut off his first bell Saturday just to lie in bed and think about it for just a bit longer.

This "bit longer" ended up causing him to wake up two hours later then he had intended, causing him to panic before he remembered it was the first Saturday of the new school year. This did not stop him from his morning routines, although there was an absence of chores from his parents on his phone. Although normally this would cause him confusion, he took it as a much deserved break for having such a conflicting first week of school.

After his shower, he opted to lounge in his boxers and watch re-runs of _Courage the Cowardly Dog_ on Boomerang. During one of the commercial breaks, he decided on a hearty breakfast and began to fry some porkchops and stew up some white gravy, all the while nearly stark naked. Midway through his cooking, he heard a familiar beep from his phone.

It was, of course, Eddy asking him what their plans were. Edd thought for a while before offering a response, too caught up in his morning to reply. He eventually texted Eddy back, inviting him and Ed to come over for breakfast in thirty minutes to offer them the big news. This gave him plenty of time to get dressed, and think of the proper way to break the news to them.

Maries morning started much the same, refusing the pleas of her alarm clock to lie in bed and enjoy the bliss a little while longer. She was eventually rudely awakened via Lee shaking the hellfire out of her mattress.

"Hurry up Sleeping Beauty! You gotta' help me move in the new dishwasher!" Lee shrieked.

"Alright! Sheesh, can't a girl enjoy peace in the sanctity of her own room once in a while?" Marie replied, unintentionally using semi-complex words to confuse her sister, "Just let me brush my teeth and pee okay? I'll be out in a second."

"Well don't take too long, I'm sure blondie will need to clog the toilet here soon." Lee offered in response, jokingly.

Marie eventually mustered the strength to crawl out of her bed and into the bathroom, and began the usual ritual of washing her teeth and brushing her hair, even if she was only helping her sister.

At 11 am, as if on a time card, she heard the flustered cries of her younger sister, and a malicious pounding on the door.

"Hurry up in there! I gotta drop the kids off at school!" May cried, almost painfully.

While disgusted by the remark, Marie had long become accustomed to her little sisters crudeness, and only stayed in a little longer before relinquishing the bathroom to May.

"At least use the plunger this time alright Bucky?" Marie teased without thought.

"We'll see who's calling who "Bucky" after I get my braces baby teeth." May struck back, referring to Maries admittedly small teeth.

Marie opted to just go help her bigger sister move the "new to you" dishwasher from there sleeping mothers flatbed pickup, ignoring anymore confrontation.

Not long after the Kankers engagement, the short and long Ed boys had arrived at the scrawny Ed's house for a filling breakfast and small talk.

"So what're we doing today Moses?" Eddy snarked, referring to Edd's tooth gap.

"Well, before we get into our Saturday evening plans, would you like some milk?" Edd offered in rhetoric, almost spilling the true beans of this gathering.

"What do I look like? A lactose-embalmment?" Eddy replied, mixing up his words in the usual manner.

After pouring both of his friends a class of 2% milk, Edd managed to sit down, and resisted the urge to delay the inevitable, and bring up the main topic of discussion.

"Gentlemen, as you know, we are in the prime of our teen-hood." Edd began, only to be offered a curious eye from Eddy whilst he chewed the perfectly fried porkchop.

"And as teens in our prime, we are expected to become more involved in the opposite sex." Edd followed, officially catching Eddy's attention. The same of which, could not be said of Ed who was busy drinking the gravy straight of a coffee mug.

"So what you're saying is you think we should all dress sharp today, and go find someone to print us fake id's to hit up _The Phoenix's Wishbone?" _Eddy inquired, referring to a local club on the side of the highway leading to Peach Creek proper.

"Not exactly, well, not at all actually." Edd responded.

"Well cut to it slick, we got a Saturday to plan." Eddy demanded.

"To make a long story short, I have recently become infatuated with a young woman whom I expect neither of you to approve of." Edd shot out, stern in his demeanor.

"You gotta be kidding me…" Eddy mustered, "You're taking Sarah to the sophomore dance?"

This caught Ed's attention.

"Double Dee! You have to have baby sister home by 8, and you must afford her the fineries she deserves, or Ed does not approve!" Ed shouted with a mouth full of gravy, more than likely not following the conversation at all.

This caused Double Dee to face-palm himself with a sigh.

"No, Eddy. Not only is she far too young to even consider taking to any kind of dance, she is also historically devious an abusive to any cause we support." Edd responded, immediately grasping the irony of the last statement in relation to his actual news.

"Alright, so what is it?" Eddy inquired with a slight chuckle at his outburst.

"I have decided that it is in my personal interest to court with Marie Kanker." he said more confidently then he felt, "I feel as though it will offer us both happiness in the short run, or at least experience in the long run. I hope that you, as my friends, will support me in my decisions, and not resort to petty judgement and tom-foolery."

Eddy took a moment to take it in, and finish chewing and swallow his pork chop, followed by a long sip of milk.

"And?" Eddy inquired, punctuated by the tap of his empty glass hitting the kitchen bar.

This had officially stumped Double Dee. He didn't expect Ed to have much of an opinion on his recent endeavors with Marie, but he certainly thought Eddy would have something to say.

"You don't care?" Double asked, pleading for affirmation.

"Listen Sockhead, whether I care or not doesn't matter if you're really into this thing ya know?" Eddy said with a twinge of wisdom, "The way I sees' it, as long as you don't stop hanging out with us for her, you could run away for a weekend and marry the poor girl!"

Double Dee's immediate confusion was then relinquished with glee at his closest friend's acceptance. After taking in what Eddy had said, he hugged his best friend.

"Geeze socko, am I gonna have to tell poor Marie you're already cheating on her?" Eddy joked before prying Double Dee off his person, "Now what are we doing today boys?"

With this weight off his shoulder, the conversations went back to a mostly normal tone between the teenagers.

Meanwhile, in the Kanker household it was nearing noon. Marie had helped her sister move in the new appliance, and, since she wouldn't get to see her Eddward until later, that she would devote some time on installing some refurbished fuel lines on the Nova she had picked up as a project over the summer.

Her work was cut short by the awakening of her mother who requested immediate arrival of all her daughters. The Kankers' mother worked very long and strenuous hours at a local diner as a shift manager, and while her household and lifestyle wouldn't show it, was avid at saving money, only spending on the bare essentials. She had tried to pass on as much of this stinginess, as some would call it, to her daughters.

The roll call seemed ominous at first, but ended with Ms. Kanker inquiring her daughters over the prospect of grilling burgers later that night, and encouraged them to invite friends over.

The problem was that outside of Eddward, Marie didn't really have any friends that weren't her sisters. Lee had some of the girls from her mothers' work from picking up shifts with her mom, and May was getting picked up by their uncle to stay on his farm with their cousins later that night.

What first seemed an obstacle ended in Marie realizing she could just invite Double Dee over and get him more acquainted with her and her family's lifestyle. She decided she would shoot him a text later that evening as to not interrupt his and his friend's shenanigans.

Meanwhile, the Eds were still discussing their evening plans.

"I still say we at least try to hit up that club, Kev said they barely even id." Eddy said, firm in his words.

"I don't see how an institute such as that can just 'barely id', Eddy." Double said with crossed arms, "I feel as though even if they didn't id us that our youthful look would definitely set of some red flags."

Eddy huffed in frustration, knowing his friend was right.

"Then what do we do, it's almost 12:30! Time is fleeting boys, we're not getting any younger." he said.

Double Dee had thought of the night before, and the old shag-wagon they had called their control center in their childhood days.

"Well, we could always try to move that old van out of the junkyard and into the vacant lot behind your house. You did say we needed to refurbish it to its original glory someday." Edd offered, "And I did some research last night on the internet and checked the heaps' Vin number, it hasn't had an owner or title since the early 90s. The poor thing has been waiting around to get scrapped for over a decade."

Double Dee had intentionally given the van human characteristics to entice Ed to jump on board, and it worked flawlessly.

"Aw Eddy, we have to save the van! We can't let it get eaten by the scrapped!" Ed pleaded on Eddys' heels, his eyes almost exploding with tears.

"Alright sockhead, how do you plan on moving it then?" Eddy posed.

Admittedly, Eddward had not particularly thought about this part of the plan. But then he remembered that over the summer he had to tow a small 4x4 trailer full of his dads business equipment a few times, and that the small tow hitch was still mounted on his modest Honda. It might not be the best for towing, but he was sure if they could unlock the transmission in the van and move it to neutral he could pull it the short distance out of the junkyard and into Eddy's back lot.

"I could tow it with my car." Double offered.

The look Eddy gave him was somewhere between confusion, and hysteria. He refrained from laughing at his friend, though.

"Do you really think your little eco-box could tow that fat ass Vandura?" Eddy asked.

"I think the short distance would be manageable if I kept it in low, and if we could get the van to shift to neutral. There aren't any hills or obstacles along the way, so I believe it could be very possible." Double Dee replied.

"Well let's run by my place first, my dad's got some grade A tow straps in the garage." Eddy said before leading the trio to his dad's garage.

Eddy's father was a rather large and intimidating man, so of course he had to drive a large and intimidating truck. He had a 2005 Ford F-250 outfitted with a 6.0 L V8 diesel engine. As they passed, each boy imagined the ease of pulling in the rustic Vandura with that monster. This thought was quickly surpassed when Eddy opened up the tool box and pulled out a durable tow rope. The boys then made their way to Double Dees car in unison.

After a short drive, the boys made it to the junkyard. To get the transmission to shift into neutral, the van would need some sort of power, and the battery was shot from years of aggressive erosion. Luckily, Eddy's dad, being a car salesmen, had plenty of spare parts in the garage and after a short trip back to the cul-de-sac they had a new-to-them battery to put in the old van.

After the installation of the battery, and some elbow grease on the gear column, they managed to get it in neutral. With the van hooked to Double Dee's civic, he slowly crept out of the junkyard and back into the cul-de-sac. The short drive was made long and arduous, as he didn't want to leave second gear out of fear of over taxing his gearbox. After the slow haul, they found the van parked up right behind Eddy's room. This was the first time they had seen it without garbage on all sides, and it certainly looked better surrounded by pavement and green grass.

"I can't believe it boys; one of our oldest dreams might finally become a reality!" Eddy exerted in excitement, "And right in time for my license!"

"Now Eddy, this vehicle will need pretty significant repair before it is rode worthy once more." Edd responded, only thinking of Marie's amiable vehicular knowledge.

"Well I guess I could ask pop if he wants to help us out. He could get us discounts and shit on the parts I think." Eddy mused.

"Well, before then we should probably build it some sort of temporary shelter to protect it from further rain damage, assuming it has leaks." Edd said.

And with that, the boys began to fabricate a make shift tarp roof over the treasured van.

Meanwhile, the clock was ticking toward 5 pm, and the Kanker household was preparing for one of their "famous" cookouts. In the Park-n-Flush trailer park, mama Kanker was well known for her grilling prowess, and was happy to serve any of her neighbors that decided to show. Just as her daughters served the Eds on first encounter.

Marie decided it was time to shoot Edd a text, and told him if he wanted to come to show up around 7:30. He, of course, agreed. This filled young Maries' heart with sunrays of happiness, and she was so excited to see him even after just one day.

Since it was still rather warm, a calm 68F, she decided to wear some olive drab khaki shorts, and a tank top, almost resembling her signature outfit, but with shorts. Above all else, she wanted to be comfortable.

Little did Eddward know that the cookout wasn't all Marie planned on attending, she had decided earlier that day to see just how flustered she could get the poor Ed boy later that night.

Double Dee ended up not taking a shower since he did earlier that day, and had not gotten dirty yet. He did change into some cleaner cloths, some cargo shorts and a red polo to be exact, and decided to make his way to the cookout a little early, clocking in at around 6:10.

After a short walk through the construction area, he found himself in the once notorious trailer park, complete with his memories of his childhood woes. His entire afterthought vanished when he laid eyes upon his blue haired majesty, and he continued his strut inward, albeit a little perkier in his step.

"Hey there Double Dee!" Marie exclaimed before a short skip followed by a lunging hug.

"Hello to you too Marie," Double Dee said, adjusting his hat whilst the adolescent stay wrapped around his waist, "So who all did you invite?"

"I think some of the neighbors will show, Lee invited her friend from work, and then there's you of course honeybun." Marie answered with a tap on his nose, causing a slight blush.

"Well, what do you usually do at these things?" Double asked.

"Wellllll we could go sit around and talk with the family, or we could go down to the creek and skip rocks till the food is done." she answered, "But you have to meet my mom before all else, she will adore you!"

Marie then tugged Edward into the main pit of activity amongst this small trailer park, where he was met with an intimidating woman.

Ms. Kanker stood at about 5"10, nearly the same height as him, had the same curly ginger hair passed down to Lee, and had a thick frame. Not fat by any means, but very busty in all of her secondary sexual areas. But he could see the wisdom in her aged skin, and the youth still present in her blue eyes.

"You must be Edward." she appointed in the same accent as Lee, but less gruff.

"Um y-yes, I am Edward." Double Dee whimpered out, thrown off by this spontaneous introduction, "You must be the Ms. Kanker I keep hearing about."

Marie shot him a weird look, as if she was confused by his brown nosing.

Luckily, the slight honey-combing seamed to ease the situation when Ms. Kanker adorned a slight smile, and relinquished her hands from her hips to give the teen a hug. This, unsurprisingly, surprised Edd.

"Well you've gotta be some helluva man to tame this one, I swear we couldn't get her to sleep but two times when she was a baby, and both of those times she got into my Nyquil cabinet!" Ms. Kanker let out with a hearty laugh.

Edward didn't really know how to reply, luckily Marie did for him.

"Oh I promise mama, he is." Marie said in an unusually domineering tone before pulling Double Dee closer from her backside.

"Well whatever makes you happy makes me happy darlin', I think the dogs' are getting close to done, go ahead and grab yourself a plate kids." the Kanker matriarch said in a southern twange for no apparent reason.

The rest of the feast went on much like this, with each of the attendees exchanging small talk and urban legends to scare the younger kids present. At around 9 pm, all but Marie's family and Ed had called it a night.

"Well I'm gonna head to bed, I gotta 'nother double tomorrow. You should think about it too Lee, you're comin' in with me tomorrow, remember?" Ms. Kanker reminded Lee.

"I know ma', let's give these love birds some peace and quiet." Lee chuckled before exchanging goodnights with her sister and Edd.

And with the shut of the screen door, the young couple was left alone for the night. They had decided to just sit by the fire until it finally sizzled out when it was nearly absolute dark. Little did Edd know that everything was going according to Marie's plan.

"Hey Edd, wanna go somewhere more comfy?" Marie posed.

Double Dee was a little bit confused, but did eventually end up conforming to the answer he knew she wanted to hear.

They made their way a little ways through the woods, to one of the many abandoned shacks they had used to torment the Eds back in the day. Although this one was different. It had three or four sleeping beds rolled around, along with seven or eight pillows, all the while being surrounded by large candles and a hanging electric lantern.

"You like it? I decided to give this old shack a makeover to suite us more. How do you feel about that dreamboat, our own personal sex dungeon!" Marie said excitedly, purposefully trying to break Edd's comfort zone.

This worked right as she had planned, causing the shivering Double Dee to break into perspiration. If Edd had known she was equally as inexperienced as he was, he maybe could've taken the joke more light-heartedly.

"W-what do you-…we've only been together for a few days Marie, is this really the deus ex Machina of our relationship already?" Edd bargained.

"Well, when you put it that way," Marie continued the harassment and leaned into Edd until his back was pressed against a wall, "Maybe some other time love-bug." She whispered into Edd's quivering ear.

Edd had stopped shaking after realizing this was just another cruel tease on Marie's part. He had never even fathomed the thought of any sort of sexual encounter with a woman, let alone her. Although the idea finally coming to the light was a weight off of his frail shoulders, and he admittedly was excited for that bit of the relationship.

His relief was only momentary as Marie essentially threw him down onto the makeshift bed, and slowly crawled up to his face. A slight wind could be heard over both of their shallow breaths, and thus a very intense kissing session occurred. This went on for 5 minutes when Marie had noticed a slight bulge pressing against her upper pelvis. This completely took her off her game; she had never gotten this far with anyone. She could play dirty all she wanted, but nothing could match to actual experience.

With her guard cut short, Double Dee felt a hormonal rush of energy and managed to flip her over to be on the bottom; this greatly surprised Marie yet again, as she was still shocked over their shared lust.

The night continued on like this for a little while until the hours of teasing was finally enough for poor Edd, as he began to feel a sharp, bruise like pain in his nether regions.

"Owe, alright, I gotta get going home soon Marie." Double Dee said as he stood up and readjusted his pants to hide his acquired form.

Marie looked at him with dough eyes, and the saddest bottom lip she could muster.

"Babyyyyy won't you just sleep here with me? The door locks, and it won't get cold tonight." she pleaded on her knees.

Edd wanted to, but he was worried about the pain in his pants, and if they were moving too far too fast, but her puppy dog face broke these thoughts very quickly.

"I suppose it would not hurt to stay here, I've nothing planned for tomorrow but evening studying." he answered.

"Well alright, hop on in sugar cookie." Marie said imitating a southern belle voice.

After a little bit of adjusting and spooning, Marie decided her shorts were uncomfortable and that she wanted to sleep in her panties and shirt. Edd felt her movements, and then saw her put her shorts to the side in the pale of the moonlight.

"You'd be a lot more comfortable if you took off your shorts Edd." Marie said matter-o-factly.

"Marie, I-I don't know if that is a-appr-"

"Just do it." Marie said assertively.

Following her demand, he slowly managed off his belt and then finally his shorts. The way they were spooning, he seemed to feel everything, and the inside of his shorts had become sticky and wet, and the pain was back.

Maries' end was just as full of sensuality. She felt his member more prominently than ever before. It was pressing on the crease of her butt, and she could hardly maintain enough control to not press ever so slightly harder onto his pelvis.

The small shack remained a stuffy love-hut for the remainder of the night. Both resisting primal urges they had not yet experienced, both excited to eventually get to that point of comfort with each other.

Authors note:

It's been a long time. A long long long time. I know on the last entry I said I was going on hiatus, but I never imagined it would be this long. I ended up losing the hardrive all my old files were on, and got completely caught up in finishing last years schooling, and then working a ton more, and then now I'm almost done with this, my final year of school, and without much work coming my way, so I finally can maybe kick this up again. I would like to extend a heartfelt thankyou to all of you who stuck around. I'm sure the wait wasn't worth it, but I tried. I'll try to sparingly update this, but honestly I just want it to reach a conclusion; I just love this couple. Andy and all reviews give me motivation, and as always, feel free to message me any questions.

Have a good day!


End file.
